THE MORNING RANT: My Gripe Against Hollywood – the Unintelligible, Artistic Mumble

Hollywood is not my normal beat. I once wrote a piece about David Zaslav’s looting of Warner Bros Discovery after he ran the company into the ground while extracting generational wealth for himself. But in general, I am happy to keep up with the business of Hollywood by following Christian Toto (Hollywood in Toto), George MF Washington’s Hollywood-insider substack (The Continental Congress) and by reading Ace’s accounts of Disney’s self-immolation.

So, with Ace and them fighting the political fight involving Hollywood, I’d like to weigh in on another subject related to the industry - I can’t understand half the dialogue in the shows I stream.

Dear Hollywood: Enough with the artistic mumble.

Watching streaming series is a relatively new thing for my wife and me. Both of us fell out of the habit of watching TV series several decades ago, and it was only in the past five years or so that we’ve picked up the habit again here in the streaming era. On weekend nights when we’re not out, we enjoy watching a couple episodes of whatever show we’re following, but I sometimes feel like giving up on it since half of the dialogue nowadays is barely intelligible.

The problem is not a hearing issue. At my office, I’m sometimes involved in whispered conversations about semi-confidential matters. There are also women who talk in vocal fry. In office meeting there is overlapping chatter. In all these circumstances, everyone is still understandable. The problem is not my ears.

I’m not sure if Hollywood is full of actors who no longer know how to articulate, or if it’s sound engineers who make the actors’ speech inaudible, or some combination of the two.

The speaking affectation in modern shows seems to be equal parts mumble, whisper, and vocal fry. I cannot turn my TV up loud enough for some conversations to be greater than a whisper, or understandable. I might think it was my TV, but we replaced a TV recently, and nothing changed. Even more telling, the speech in news and sports broadcasts is still loud, crisp, and easily understood, as are old sitcoms and TV series.

At times I wonder if there is a “mumble filter” through which Hollywood sound engineers are now subjecting audio. My wife and I were very late to the series “Justified.” We watched the original series just about the time the 2023 reboot, “City Primeval,” came along. We never had any problem understanding what was being said in the original Justified, but the reboot was almost completely unintelligible. Almost all speaking was a barely audible mumble, and even Timothy Oliphant now sounded like he was whispering through a mouth full of marbles, unlike in the original series. Was a conscious decision made to have spoken words be mostly inaudible?

People do not talk like this in real life. This Hollywood speaking affectation is just as fake as the Mid-Atlantic accent of Hollywood’s golden era – but at least we could understand what was being said in those old movies.

It’s also noteworthy that despite the prevalence of the “artistic mumble,” there are still actors who will not be mumbled. Billy Bob Thornton speaks slowly and clearly, and I never have any trouble understanding him. Jamie Lee Curtis has been in several shows we’ve watched recently. She still projects her voice and speaks with authority. There is far more art in their performances than from those actors who are mumbling lines without breathing or moving their lips.

Please, Hollywood, I’m willing to consume your product. Can you have your actors and sound engineers retire the artistic mumble before I give up on Hollywood again?

*****

Throckmorton’s First Law of Live Music: “If There’s an Upright Bass in the Band, It’s Probably Going to be Good”

Something sweet and heartwarming happened on Twitter/X this past weekend – a mutual-admiration love affair broke out between conservative Americans who respect Japan and its culture, and conservative Japanese who admire our culture, all of whom seek to preserve their own cultures against hostile immigration.

There was a lot of good-natured ribbing and affectionate cultural appropriation flying around between Japan and the U.S., including Japanese cowgirls, celebrations of beef and sushi, and some cross-pollinated music.

In that spirit, here is a Japanese band performing the bluegrass classic “Fox on the Run.”

[buck.throckmorton at protonmail dot com]

Posted by: Buck Throckmorton at 11:00 AM

Comments

(Jump to bottom of comments)

1 FIRST!!!!!

Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at April 03, 2026 11:00 AM (Zz0t1)

2 Blessed Good Friday, Buck.

Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at April 03, 2026 11:00 AM (Zz0t1)

3 OK

Posted by: Lizzy at April 03, 2026 11:00 AM (Suwql)

4 Hi.

Posted by: no one of any consequence at April 03, 2026 11:01 AM (qFwJc)

5 I have hearing loss. I must have closed captioning. Even with hearing aids, the mumble is just horrible.

Posted by: no one of any consequence at April 03, 2026 11:01 AM (qFwJc)

6 Yo

Posted by: Martini Farmer at April 03, 2026 11:02 AM (AkEZC)

7 >>The speaking affectation in modern shows seems to be equal parts mumble, whisper, and vocal fry.

I use subtitles.

Started it when I was streaming "Vikings" and have never stopped. It is your friend!

Posted by: Lizzy at April 03, 2026 11:02 AM (Suwql)

8 The speaking affectation in modern shows seems to be equal parts mumble, whisper, and vocal fry. I cannot turn my TV up loud enough for some conversations to be greater than a whisper, or understandable. I might think it was my TV, but we replaced a TV recently, and nothing changed.

Until the music plays.......

Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at April 03, 2026 11:02 AM (Zz0t1)

9 Or there's gunfire or an explosion.

Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at April 03, 2026 11:02 AM (Zz0t1)

10 Was a conscious decision made to have spoken words be mostly inaudible?

They're all just huge Shaquille O'Neal fans.

Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at April 03, 2026 11:03 AM (Zz0t1)

11 Hollywood probably needs to be destroyed. If left around, it will inevitably affect the industries of countries like South Korea and Japan who do not yet produce woke garbage. Its magnetic pull even as it bleeds cash is baffling, but real. Let its ruins in Los Angeles serve as a warning to future generations.

Posted by: the lower depths at April 03, 2026 11:04 AM (PrKv7)

12 The point of modern Hollywood is not so that you can hear the actors.

It's so that you can listen to ***THE MESSAGE*** (cue Critical Drinker's voice).

Posted by: "Perfessor" Squirrel at April 03, 2026 11:04 AM (ESVrU)

13 I concur with your comments about dialogue on TV shows.
I find myself using the Closed Caption feature almost full time now.
Netflix shows are particularly effected by this issue. Along with all the other Woke BS they regularly inject into every show.
If it weren't for the non-Netflix movies I can access, I'd probably cancel.

Posted by: proudvastrightwingguy at April 03, 2026 11:04 AM (MNCvZ)

14 Between needing captions for basic conversations and watching shows that apparently failed to pay the light bill so they had to be shot in the dark, modern entertainment lost its value a while back.

Posted by: NR Pax at April 03, 2026 11:04 AM (NR6c1)

15 "I cannot turn my TV up loud enough for some conversations to be greater than a whisper, or understandable. "

It ain't just the TV, I have that same issues with talk radio when they have people phone in. And it just isn't me, my wife can't understand what they are saying either and she isn't deaf like I am.

Posted by: Mister Scott (Formerly GWS) at April 03, 2026 11:04 AM (0N4FZ)

16 Japanese band performing ...“Fox on the Run.”

Sweet!

Posted by: man at April 03, 2026 11:04 AM (XuXeR)

17 When I watch shows on streaming (mainly Amazon Prime Video) I always enable close captioning… I thought my hearing was getting bad and the CC is awesome. But maybe my hearing is okay… in any case CC is a huge positive

Posted by: LinusVanPelt at April 03, 2026 11:05 AM (X5Baq)

18 >>We never had any problem understanding what was being said in the original Justified,

Well, look at the actors - that show was so well cast!
Timothy Oliphant (swoon), Walton Goggins, Nick Searcy, Margot Martindale, Neil McDonough and more!

They know how to ACT!

Posted by: Lizzy at April 03, 2026 11:05 AM (Suwql)

19 Sinatra referred to Brando as “Mumbles” when they were making “Guys and Dolls.”

Posted by: Bulg at April 03, 2026 11:05 AM (77rzZ)

20 Buck, you are not alone in finding dialogue in modern shows and movies to be nearly unintelligible. When I was studying drama lo these many years ago, we were always exhorted to "Enunciate!" Yes, Marlon Brando and James Dean had infected young actors with the mumbling routine, but it had not yet taken hold completely.

Recently Heroes & Icons, the TV channel running all the Trek series, lost its closed-captioning. I was able to understand all the lines in TOS (to be fair, I know many of them by heart), 99% of those in TNG, and 90% of those in DS9. When Linda brings a modern movie from the library for us to watch, I wince -- mumbling dialogue and murky lighting everywhere. I suspect they are trying in part to cover poor special effects and acting.

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere at April 03, 2026 11:05 AM (wzUl9)

21 The "kid punks CNN" from the sidebar is sad and hysterical at the same time.

Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at April 03, 2026 11:06 AM (Zz0t1)

22 >>>conservative Americans who respect Japan and its culture, and conservative Japanese who admire our culture, all of whom seek to preserve their own cultures against hostile immigration

That last part ("all of whom seek to preserve their own cultures against hostile immigration") I didn't gather from the 𝕏 fun this last weekend.

Posted by: m at April 03, 2026 11:06 AM (fNISR)

23 Day 2 of being smokeless and I still haven't murdered anyone.

Posted by: Duke Lowell at April 03, 2026 11:06 AM (2UnvF)

24 Between needing captions for basic conversations and watching shows that apparently failed to pay the light bill so they had to be shot in the dark, modern entertainment lost its value a while back.
Posted by: NR Pax at April 03, 2026

***
Great way to put it!

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere at April 03, 2026 11:06 AM (wzUl9)

25
It's so that you can listen to ***THE MESSAGE*** (cue Critical Drinker's voice).

Posted by: "Perfessor" Squirrel at April 03, 2026 11:04 AM (ESVrU)

*screen shakes uncontrollably*

Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at April 03, 2026 11:06 AM (Zz0t1)

26 I once escorted our church's youth group on a Mission trip to West Tennessee. We slept with about a thousand others in the local high school. There was one group of Japanese students there for a factfinding mission about how these things were done.

One night was talent night. There were many kids who sang and played guitars. The highlight of the evening, though, was when some of the Japanese kids came out in large inflatable sumo outfits (basically beach balls worn around the body) and spent their time running into and bouncing off of each other. They brought the house down.

Posted by: Archimedes at April 03, 2026 11:06 AM (Riz8t)

27 And a few of us don't hear so well. Pretty much full time captions.

Posted by: JM in Illinois at April 03, 2026 11:07 AM (e1HT8)

28 I have hearing loss. I must have closed captioning. Even with hearing aids, the mumble is just horrible.

Posted by: no one of any consequence at April 03, 2026 11:01 AM (qFwJc)
---
I'm close captioning a video right now of an Asian professor describing paleomagnetism. It's interesting what the auto-captioning is coming up with to interpret her accent.

"Magnetic inclination" comes out as, "My romantic inclination."

Posted by: "Perfessor" Squirrel at April 03, 2026 11:07 AM (ESVrU)

29 >>People do not talk like this in real life. This Hollywood speaking affectation is just as fake as the Mid-Atlantic accent of Hollywood’s golden era

I blame Aaron Sorkin!
OK, not really, but his dialog is always particularly affected.

Posted by: Lizzy at April 03, 2026 11:07 AM (Suwql)

30 Another positive about CC… I like to watch British shows (like old Poirot’s) and the accents make it hard to understand what’s being said sometimes… the CC solves that problem as well…. Heck I now know what some of those French phrases are that the little Belgian speaks so quickly!

Posted by: LinusVanPelt at April 03, 2026 11:07 AM (X5Baq)

31 I've seen multiple links to this "friendly battle between the US and Japan," yet I've never seen anyone link the US side of the equation........

Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at April 03, 2026 11:07 AM (Zz0t1)

32 My Gripe Against Hollywood – the Unintelligible, Artistic Mumble

Man, I hate that shit. -- Billie Eilish

Posted by: I used to have a different nic at April 03, 2026 11:08 AM (ExV1e)

33 Day 2 of being smokeless and I still haven't murdered anyone.

Posted by: Duke Lowell at April 03, 2026 11:06 AM (2UnvF)

Yet.

Posted by: Washington Nearsider: Gotterdammerung at April 03, 2026 11:08 AM (FmapG)

34 Please, Hollywood, I’m willing to consume your product. Can you have your actors and sound engineers retire the artistic mumble before I give up on Hollywood again?

*****

They've shit on and insulted me enough to NOT have this attitude.

F*ck hollywood. Die a death of 10,000 papercuts. I care not.

Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at April 03, 2026 11:09 AM (Zz0t1)

35
Go back 60 years and try to understand what Brian Kieth was saying in "Family Affair".

Posted by: Auspex at April 03, 2026 11:09 AM (Y8DZL)

36 Ha! Thanks Buck for pointing this out.

They think mumbling is acting. Also eye-blinking.

Posted by: San Franpsycho at April 03, 2026 11:09 AM (RIvkX)

37 A lot of the actors in classic Hollywood were also stage actors, so they knew how to enunciate and project.

Posted by: Bulg at April 03, 2026 11:09 AM (77rzZ)

38 Another positive about CC… I like to watch British shows (like old Poirot’s) and the accents make it hard to understand what’s being said sometimes… the CC solves that problem as well….

Peaky Blinders was the worst. The dialogue was simply unintelligible without subtitles.

Posted by: Archimedes at April 03, 2026 11:09 AM (Riz8t)

39 We slept with about a thousand others in the local high school.

Posted by: Archimedes at April 03, 2026 11:06 AM (Riz8t)

SWEET!

- J. Epstein

Posted by: Washington Nearsider: Gotterdammerung at April 03, 2026 11:09 AM (FmapG)

40 They think mumbling is acting. Also eye-blinking.
Posted by: San Franpsycho at April 03, 2026 11:09 AM (RIvkX)

The more you mumble, the more SERIOUS you are, you see.

Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at April 03, 2026 11:09 AM (Zz0t1)

41 Gavin Newsom remembers the good old days.

https://is.gd/xS0d9e

Posted by: Anonosaurus Wrecks, Damn It Feels Good to Be a Trumpster! at April 03, 2026 11:10 AM (ndZc7)

42 I too have issues with hearing dialog on TV. It's a pain to keep changing the volume and my wife just gets annoyed with me.

I think it has something to do with the soundtrack and compression. Or so some say.

Posted by: Martini Farmer at April 03, 2026 11:10 AM (AkEZC)

43 Watch Hammer films instead.

They speak clearly there!

Posted by: TheJamesMadison, discovering British horror with Hammer Films at April 03, 2026 11:11 AM (hAotW)

44 Gavin Newsom remembers the good old days.

https://is.gd/xS0d9e
Posted by: Anonosaurus Wrecks, Damn It Feels Good to Be a Trumpster! at April 03, 2026 11:10 AM (ndZc7)

Someone posted a Xcrement feed where they showed how there were 2 Bidens. That was the 2nd Biden.

Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at April 03, 2026 11:11 AM (Zz0t1)

45 FWIW, it's smartphones. When everything is funneled thru a 16th of an inch or smaller speaker...
Compressed dynamic range is all you'll get

Posted by: man at April 03, 2026 11:11 AM (XuXeR)

46 >>A lot of the actors in classic Hollywood were also stage actors, so they knew how to enunciate and project.

THIS.
More recently, you have actors who have done voice work on animated movies and video games.

Posted by: Lizzy at April 03, 2026 11:11 AM (Suwql)

47 It's garbage.

Posted by: Guy who always says "It's garbage" at April 03, 2026 11:11 AM (qjK5t)

48 https://is.gd/xS0d9e

Ha! He got the call he better fvcking post Biden after posting Obama earlier.

Posted by: San Franpsycho at April 03, 2026 11:12 AM (RIvkX)

49 Amusing side note for the American/Japanese culture exchange.

One of the problems from the Japanese was that Americans have no problem going to pirate sites for anime. Then Elon happened and the Japanese got to see just how butchered various shows were in order to appeal to the "Modern Audience."

This marked a rare moment where they agreed about going to a pirate site to watch something.

Posted by: NR Pax at April 03, 2026 11:12 AM (NR6c1)

50 Mr. Inbetween:

"I'm thinking of working toward becoming a bigtime director."

"Like, hollywood?"

"Yeah, mate."

"You'd fit right in. You're a freak."

Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at April 03, 2026 11:13 AM (Zz0t1)

51 >>>>>conservative Americans who respect Japan and its culture, and conservative Japanese who admire our culture, all of whom seek to preserve their own cultures against hostile immigration

>>That last part ("all of whom seek to preserve their own cultures against hostile immigration") I didn't gather from the 𝕏 fun this last weekend.

Yes. From what I've seen it's been a mutual admiration thing.

Posted by: Lizzy at April 03, 2026 11:13 AM (Suwql)

52 I've read that the sound engineers don't get the budgets that they want; that microphone placement is becoming a lost art; that the sound mixing is done for theaters, and not for home viewing; that the wide viewing environment variances of increasingly-popular home viewing are nearly impossible to mix for. And more. So it seems that there is a technical basis behind the dialogue difficulties.

None of which address the fact that ads are all clearly (and loudly) comprehensible. Nope, the biggest problem is this fascination among the studios for breathy mumbling as their single sop to passion.

As always, these are not bright people.

Posted by: LCMS Rulz! at April 03, 2026 11:14 AM (bufu1)

53 "People do not talk like this in real life."

Gonna have to call bullshit on that statement, Buck.

'Pardon?'
'Say again?'
'What was that?'
'If you want to be heard, you need to SPEAK UP.'
'FFS, volume. Enunciate. From the diaphram, woman!'

Things that are repeatedly said by me in a household with a wife who speaks at a lower volume.

a) My ears are not what they once were.
b) My youngest daughter says exactly the same things to my wife, so it's not just my ears!

Posted by: Grumpy and Recalcitrant at April 03, 2026 11:15 AM (O7YUW)

54 The commercials are always loud and clear

Posted by: fd at April 03, 2026 11:15 AM (qjK5t)

55 Vocals on TV and movies isn't an acting problem so much as it is a microphone problem. Granted, some of it is that actors never learned how to "speak to the last row" in a theater, but it's a budget issue now.

Used to be that the production company would hire a bunch of crew to hold boom mics just out of frame to capture vocals. That is vastly more expensive than pinning a hidden lavalier mic inside someone's shirt, but the audio capture also sucks orders of magnitude harder.

Posted by: ballistic at April 03, 2026 11:15 AM (oqH4h)

56 In that spirit, here is a Japanese band performing the bluegrass classic “Fox on the Run.”

Love the 'choreography' to get to the single mic, and, of course, the banjo girl going on tiptoes to get her voice heard.

Posted by: t-bird at April 03, 2026 11:15 AM (x/Rva)

57
"Justified" also cast Patton Oswalt, a shark jumping event.

Posted by: Auspex at April 03, 2026 11:15 AM (Y8DZL)

58 57
"Justified" also cast Patton Oswalt, a shark jumping event.
Posted by: Auspex at April 03, 2026 11:15 AM (Y8DZL)

Oops.

Owt......

Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at April 03, 2026 11:16 AM (Zz0t1)

59 CSAR operations underway in Iran as we try to recover the crew from a downed F-15.

Posted by: Washington Nearsider: Gotterdammerung at April 03, 2026 11:16 AM (FmapG)

60 CSAR operations underway in Iran as we try to recover the crew from a downed F-15.
Posted by: Washington Nearsider: Gotterdammerung at April 03, 2026 11:16 AM (FmapG)

I thought someone already posted last thread they had the pilots back.

Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at April 03, 2026 11:17 AM (Zz0t1)

61 Buck you need to have a Movie Video series

Posted by: Skip at April 03, 2026 11:17 AM (Ia/+0)

62 I run subtitles on every show that I stream.

Posted by: mr tmz at April 03, 2026 11:18 AM (rJ48h)

63 57
"Justified" also cast Patton Oswalt, a shark jumping event.
Posted by: Auspex at April 03, 2026 11:15 AM (Y8DZL)

Oops.

Owt......
Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at April 03, 2026 11:16 AM (Zz0t1)

I didn’t even like Oswalt in King of Queens, a show I really like… but every scene he appeared in was painful to watch (unless he was getting pantsed by Doug)

Posted by: LinusVanPelt at April 03, 2026 11:18 AM (aSzdc)

64 Buck you need to have a Movie Video series
Posted by: Skip at April 03, 2026 11:17 AM (Ia/+0)

Someone should really do a YT video series where they talk in layman's terms about movies, their producers and what makes them good or bad.

I think the internet is starving for something like that.

Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at April 03, 2026 11:18 AM (Zz0t1)

65 @MichelleMaxwell
·
1h
💥 TWO SOMALI-AMERICAN JUDGES ARRESTED IN MINNEAPOLIS DAWN RAID: 3.25 TONS OF COCAINE & $1.5 BILLION JUDICIAL FRAUD NETWORK EXPOSED
At 4:18 a.m., over 200 federal agents stormed 17 locations across Minneapolis and St. Paul, shattering the sanctity of the justice system.
The targets: sitting federal judges Amina Hassan and Khaled Osman — a married couple who allegedly used their courtrooms to shield the Sinaloa and CJNG cartels.

-----

Hmmm...FBI arresting judges?

Can't have happened. Trump turned his attention to Iran which means that all domestic efforts at his agenda stopped.

Posted by: TheJamesMadison, discovering British horror with Hammer Films at April 03, 2026 11:18 AM (hAotW)

66 I can hear the women just fine on TV. It's the men I can't. It's like they're talking through their teeth. The women screech.

I get a lot of that IRL.

Posted by: Martini Farmer at April 03, 2026 11:19 AM (AkEZC)

67 *I meant to say 'directors.'

Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at April 03, 2026 11:19 AM (Zz0t1)

68 64 Someone should really do a YT video series where they talk in layman's terms about movies, their producers and what makes them good or bad.

I think the internet is starving for something like that.

Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at April 03, 2026 11:18 AM (Zz0t1)

======

Only the land of assholes.

Posted by: TheJamesMadison, discovering British horror with Hammer Films at April 03, 2026 11:19 AM (hAotW)

69 thought someone already posted last thread they had the pilots back.

Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at April 03, 2026 11:17 AM (Zz0t1)

I haven't see anything that says that. We just confirmed the loss within the past hour or so.

Posted by: Washington Nearsider: Gotterdammerung at April 03, 2026 11:19 AM (FmapG)

70 how to enunciate and project.

Ned Sparks.

Posted by: Commissar of plenty and festive little hats at April 03, 2026 11:19 AM (Kt19C)

71 Hmmm...FBI arresting judges?

Can't have happened. Trump turned his attention to Iran which means that all domestic efforts at his agenda stopped.
Posted by: TheJamesMadison, discovering British horror with Hammer Films at April 03, 2026 11:18 AM (hAotW)

Because everyone knows he can't multitask.

Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at April 03, 2026 11:19 AM (Zz0t1)

72 My hearing is very good. On shows I know, I'm good with volume at 7/100. For movies, 9 or 10.

But yeah, closed captioning is the best. It started with the asian horror movies and just carried over. Especially horror movies where there's constant whispering. And the closed captions often tell you about sounds way in the background.

My pet peeve, texting in movies and tv shows. I stop the video to catch the entire 'coversation.' Just put freaking huge subtitles on the bottom of the screen. Worst thing ever for movies.

Posted by: Stateless - He ain't heavy, he's my dog. Old, but full of life. at April 03, 2026 11:20 AM (Sco7b)

73
I haven't see anything that says that. We just confirmed the loss within the past hour or so.
Posted by: Washington Nearsider: Gotterdammerung at April 03, 2026 11:19 AM (FmapG)

F*cking lying internet.

Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at April 03, 2026 11:20 AM (Zz0t1)

74 Young ladies, usually under 25, that have to talk so fast you wonder if they're going to auctioneer school. At least the customer service WOGS keep it slow.

Posted by: bill in arkansas, not gonna comply with nuttin, waiting for the 0300 knock on the door at April 03, 2026 11:20 AM (gm9Sb)

75 Watch Hammer films instead.

They speak clearly there!

Trust me. I know what I'm doing.

Posted by: Hammer at April 03, 2026 11:20 AM (vTZFs)

76 How does one fail to mention Natalie Zea when listing cast members of Justified?

Smoke show..

Posted by: one hour sober at April 03, 2026 11:20 AM (Y1sOo)

77 One report that the Pilot and Weapons Officer ejected from their F-15E, and have already been safely extracted from Iranian territory.

Fast footwork by the SAR community and their supporting air components. A plane crew in Iranian hands - ** Shudder**

We have A-10s, C-130s and more in the SAR effort.
C-130s over Iran, and within range of ground (rifle) fire.
CENTCOM is silent, so far. So is Iran.

Iranians saying the hunt is on, with a $30,000 reward. Iranians misidentified the plane as F-35.

Posted by: NaCly Dog at April 03, 2026 11:21 AM (u82oZ)

78 > thought someone already posted last thread they had the pilots back.

Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at April 03, 2026 11:17 AM (Zz0t1)

I haven't see anything that says that. We just confirmed the loss within the past hour or so.
Posted by: Washington Nearsider: Gotterdammerung at April 03, 2026 11:19 AM (FmapG)
------------
Haven't seen any confirmation. Only that SAR is ongoing.

Sources?

Posted by: Martini Farmer at April 03, 2026 11:21 AM (AkEZC)

79 F*cking lying internet.

Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at April 03, 2026 11:20 AM (Zz0t1)

Pavehawks and C-130Js are still actively circling and fueling. We're not acting like we've recovered them yet.

Posted by: Washington Nearsider: Gotterdammerung at April 03, 2026 11:21 AM (FmapG)

80 There’s a large tech issue behind the mumbling—sound mixing. The sound is mixed as it is because it has to find a middle ground between potentially playing in a big theatre setting, TVs at home with a large array of capabilities in the sound department these days, and on tinny phone speakers for people who stream there. The issue’s likely not going away anytime soon. Help us, close captioning, you’re our only hope.

Posted by: Susan at April 03, 2026 11:21 AM (2s+J8)

81 Also eye-blinking.
Posted by: San Franpsycho

No one could blink like Bob Newhart. He used it to great comic effect.

Posted by: Bulg at April 03, 2026 11:21 AM (77rzZ)

82 1h
💥 TWO SOMALI-AMERICAN JUDGES ARRESTED IN MINNEAPOLIS DAWN RAID: 3.25 TONS OF COCAINE & $1.5 BILLION JUDICIAL FRAUD NETWORK EXPOSED
At 4:18 a.m., over 200 federal agents stormed 17 locations across Minneapolis and St. Paul, shattering the sanctity of the justice system.

Right. The federal agents shattered the sanctity of the justice system. Not the corrupt judges.

Posted by: Archimedes at April 03, 2026 11:22 AM (Riz8t)

83 Subtitles in English for an English language movie is aggravating. Mumble, mumble, what? Rewind. Are your sound engineers retarded?

Posted by: Rev. Wishbone at April 03, 2026 11:23 AM (UqSya)

84 82 Right. The federal agents shattered the sanctity of the justice system. Not the corrupt judges.

Posted by: Archimedes at April 03, 2026 11:22 AM (Riz8t)

======

Arresting the criminal federal judges is one way to open up seats on the bench.

Posted by: TheJamesMadison, discovering British horror with Hammer Films at April 03, 2026 11:23 AM (hAotW)

85 Ned Sparks.
Posted by: Commissar of plenty and festive little hats

One of my favorites.

Posted by: Bulg at April 03, 2026 11:23 AM (77rzZ)

86 F-15E is from the 49th Fighter Squadron, part of the 48th Fighter Wing based at RAF Lakenheath in the United Kingdom, nicknamed Panthers.

Posted by: NaCly Dog at April 03, 2026 11:23 AM (u82oZ)

87 If its a movie thread
TJM suggest 2 WWII movies from foreign makers
1944 is a Estonian movie
Warsaw 44 is a Polish movie

Thought both were extremely well done

Posted by: Skip at April 03, 2026 11:23 AM (Ia/+0)

88 Iranians saying the hunt is on, with a $30,000 reward. Iranians misidentified the plane as F-35.

You know they so badly wanted to call it a B-21.

Posted by: Archimedes at April 03, 2026 11:23 AM (Riz8t)

89 Haven't seen any confirmation. Only that SAR is ongoing.

Sources?

Posted by: Martini Farmer at April 03, 2026 11:21 AM (AkEZC)

CENTCOM confirmed around 1100.

https://www.cbsnews.com/ news/american-fighter-jet-f15e-downed-over-iran/

Contemporary video out of Iran shows the CSAR guys still orbiting, and photos show at least one seat with deployed chutes on the ground. (this is what I did when I was active).

Posted by: Washington Nearsider: Gotterdammerung at April 03, 2026 11:24 AM (FmapG)

90 I’m not sure if Hollywood is full of actors who no longer know how to articulate, or if it’s sound engineers who make the actors’ speech inaudible, or some combination of the two.

This started becoming an issue when sound went from analog to digital, and production teams started not caring about audio levels or sound mixing. It's why you can watch a movie shot in the 70s or 80s on TV without having to adjust your volume, but more modern movies blast the sound effects and musical score through your TV when set at low volume but require you turn your volume up another 10-15 notches to hear what people are saying.

Posted by: It's laziness and computer slop at April 03, 2026 11:24 AM (TbWk/)

91 76 How does one fail to mention Natalie Zea when listing cast members of Justified?

Smoke show..
Posted by: one hour sober

CRISTINETH!!

Posted by: Auspex at April 03, 2026 11:25 AM (Y8DZL)

92 *BLAAAAAAT*

Posted by: Christopher Nolan at April 03, 2026 11:25 AM (gKWVE)

93 Washington Nearsider: Gotterdammerung

This is only reported recently. I am certain we knew right away. Takes time to get C-130s to the location.

One empty ejection seat was found by the Iranians.

Posted by: NaCly Dog at April 03, 2026 11:26 AM (u82oZ)

94 Found the problem:

sitting federal judges Amina Hassan and Khaled Osman

Posted by: mr tmz at April 03, 2026 11:26 AM (rJ48h)

95 "TWO SOMALI-AMERICAN JUDGES ARRESTED IN MINNEAPOLIS DAWN RAID"

Somali American? Which is it? Are they not African American?

Posted by: fd at April 03, 2026 11:27 AM (/2tJz)

96 How does one fail to mention Natalie Zea when listing cast members of Justified?

She reminds me of Blake Lively.

Posted by: Archimedes at April 03, 2026 11:27 AM (Riz8t)

97 When my son was younger, he'd mumble. When he'd say something, and I'd complain about his mumbling, he'd reply, "I didn't mumble. You're just deaf."

To which I'd reply, "Yes, I'm deaf. BUT YOU STILL MUMBLE!"

Posted by: Bulg at April 03, 2026 11:27 AM (77rzZ)

98 I have no f'n clue what they are saying on Marshalls until I turn the volume to 11.
So we watch about 90% of shows with CC on.

Posted by: r hennigantx at April 03, 2026 11:27 AM (/+uur)

99 Washington Nearsider: Gotterdammerung

This is only reported recently. I am certain we knew right away. Takes time to get C-130s to the location.

One empty ejection seat was found by the Iranians.

Posted by: NaCly Dog at April 03, 2026 11:26 AM (u82oZ)

My workplace has become exceptionally busy, and that's all I'll say about it.

Posted by: Washington Nearsider: Gotterdammerung at April 03, 2026 11:27 AM (FmapG)

100 100

Posted by: r hennigantx at April 03, 2026 11:27 AM (/+uur)

101 Washington Nearsider: Gotterdammerung

SAR teams are awesome. My first ship hosted the F-111 raid on Libya SAR helo.

Posted by: NaCly Dog at April 03, 2026 11:28 AM (u82oZ)

102 I’ve been ready for Trump to declare victory in Iran and get out. BUT…. If somehow Iran shot down one of our jets and manages to nab a pilot of ours and do ANYTHING at all untoward my attitude will change completely. I’ll be like: You ain’t seen nothing yet you goat fuckers now we’re really gonna bomb you to the Stone Age.. energy infrastructure… everything. Call it righteous retribution

Posted by: LinusVanPelt at April 03, 2026 11:29 AM (aSzdc)

103 r hennigantx

Have you and m been seen in the same room?

Posted by: NaCly Dog at April 03, 2026 11:29 AM (u82oZ)

104 SAR teams are awesome. My first ship hosted the F-111 raid on Libya SAR helo.

Posted by: NaCly Dog at April 03, 2026 11:28 AM (u82oZ)

I was a Rescue Swimmer/CSAR in the olden times. 60-Ms for SAR, Sierras for gun trucks.

Posted by: Washington Nearsider: Gotterdammerung at April 03, 2026 11:29 AM (FmapG)

105 >>>but more modern movies blast the sound effects and musical score through your TV when set at low volume but require you turn your volume up another 10-15 notches to hear what people are saying.

Posted by: It's laziness and computer slop

>Don't forget the advertising. The sound levels could blow your speakers. The industry wonders why the get bad reviews. Luckily, I'm mostly not paying to rent when I'm streaming, and I haven't been to a brick and mortar theater in years.

Posted by: Rev. Wishbone at April 03, 2026 11:29 AM (UqSya)

106 Welp, I guess we now know that Rahm Emmanuel is running for preezy in '28. He's much smarter than the candidates they've run recently. He understands that the tranny nonsense doesn't play well. Of course, he's a white, male Joo, so that's a problem for the left.

Emanuel: "50% of American kids aren’t reading at grade level. Reading and math scores at a 30-year low. The Democratic Party’s response was bathroom access and trans athletes in women’s sports."

https://is.gd/s8YOIB

Posted by: Archimedes at April 03, 2026 11:29 AM (Riz8t)

107 Kiefer Sutherland on '24' was one of worst mumblers.

When we lived in Michigan, our next door neighbors were the parents of Jeff Nordling, who played the FBI agent in '24'.

Jeff and his dad came over to the house one time when Jeff was visiting his parents. He wanted to see our Bullmastiff because he was considering getting one as a family pet. (He wound up getting an English Mastiff, instead). He told me the next season of '24' had just been green-lighted. I told him to tell Kiefer Sutherland to stop mumbling. He just laughed.

Posted by: one hour sober at April 03, 2026 11:30 AM (Y1sOo)

108 106 Emanuel: "50% of American kids aren’t reading at grade level. Reading and math scores at a 30-year low. The Democratic Party’s response was bathroom access and trans athletes in women’s sports."

https://is.gd/s8YOIB

Posted by: Archimedes at April 03, 2026 11:29 AM (Riz8t)

========

He's going to take his 10th place finish in South Carolina and catapult to victory!

Posted by: TheJamesMadison, discovering British horror with Hammer Films at April 03, 2026 11:30 AM (hAotW)

109 I grew up listening to rock and roll. I got pretty good at deciphering words.

Posted by: JackStraw at April 03, 2026 11:30 AM (viF8m)

110 I had my teeth removed to provide better service to my clientele.

Posted by: Pawl at April 03, 2026 11:31 AM (INYUJ)

111 I also think the Foley artist are trying to be just too artsy.
It seems like they have miked the fan in the computer, the clickity keyboards keying, and thing going ping.
Also have to have the country star on the radio when you get in the truck.

Posted by: r hennigantx at April 03, 2026 11:32 AM (/+uur)

112 The two worst mumblers in Hollywood are Matthew McConaughey and Jeff Bridges. Bridges might be his decrepitude but McConaughey has mumbled since birth.

Posted by: toby928(c) at April 03, 2026 11:32 AM (4NO2D)

113 He's going to take his 10th place finish in South Carolina and catapult to victory!

I don't know if he thinks he has a realistic shot, but it's pretty clear that he's trying to bring the Democrats back to their senses.

Posted by: Archimedes at April 03, 2026 11:32 AM (Riz8t)

114 Rahm Emmanuel ain’t getting anywhere in a presidential run… he’s in the wrong party to be Jewish and has about as much charisma as Michael Bloomberg… a lethal combo in politics. If he’s so smart he must realize this or he has a blind spot

Posted by: LinusVanPelt at April 03, 2026 11:32 AM (aSzdc)

115 So Theo Von broke out the bullshit old saw about wars being fought " by the poor" again on Joe Rogan podcast.

Posted by: steevy at April 03, 2026 11:33 AM (YwEeS)

116 33 Day 2 of being smokeless and I still haven't murdered anyone.

Posted by: Duke Lowell at April 03, 2026 11:06 AM (2UnvF)

---'

Huge congratulation! If it will get better. And you know what? not having the urge to grab a smoke every so often will be such relief

Posted by: JM in Illinois at April 03, 2026 11:33 AM (tlviZ)

117 113 He's going to take his 10th place finish in South Carolina and catapult to victory!

I don't know if he thinks he has a realistic shot, but it's pretty clear that he's trying to bring the Democrats back to their senses.

Posted by: Archimedes at April 03, 2026 11:32 AM (Riz8t)

=======

The people who would have moderated the party have been actively insulted and pushed out over the past 18 years.

Posted by: TheJamesMadison, discovering British horror with Hammer Films at April 03, 2026 11:33 AM (hAotW)

118 IT WILL GET BETTER!

Posted by: JM in Illinois at April 03, 2026 11:34 AM (tlviZ)

119
You'd think someone running for the dempreznom would be disqualified for saying anything sane.

Posted by: Auspex at April 03, 2026 11:34 AM (Y8DZL)

120 Have you and m been seen in the same room?
Posted by: NaCly Dog at April 03, 2026 11:29 AM (u82oZ)

I would not be in a room with someone that actually invites me over.

Posted by: r hennigantx at April 03, 2026 11:34 AM (/+uur)

121 Hollywood used to be in the business of telling stories. Clear communication is required for telling good stories. Nowadays it's all about creating a "vibe".

I've noticed in students who feel they are "good writers" that they do not care at all if they have conveyed their thoughts and ideas to a reader. Instead, their writing goal is to feel like they "expressed themselves."

Posted by: Emmie -- be strong and courageous! at April 03, 2026 11:34 AM (FMtrg)

122 Some of the closed captions leave a bit to be desired as well. I've seen some with "indecipherable" or "unintelligible" in the caption. The other night I pulled up an episode of I Spy in Amazon prime video, and there was the trigger warning of violence etc at the beginning and it also said "foul language." I thought, say what? Sure enough, during the show the captioning misinterpreted something Robert Culp said and plugged in an f-bomb.

Posted by: Just Some Guy at April 03, 2026 11:35 AM (q3u5l)

123 119
You'd think someone running for the dempreznom would be disqualified for saying anything sane.

Posted by: Auspex at April 03, 2026 11:34 AM (Y8DZL)

=======

Rahm is telling the teachers' unions that they suck.

Posted by: TheJamesMadison, discovering British horror with Hammer Films at April 03, 2026 11:35 AM (hAotW)

124 Someone should really do a YT video series where they talk in layman's terms about movies, their producers and what makes them good or bad.

I think the internet is starving for something like that.
Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at April 03, 2026 11:18 AM

I would like and subscribe.

Posted by: toby928(c) at April 03, 2026 11:35 AM (4NO2D)

125 The first 24 was a interesting concept and followed it for awhile

Posted by: Skip at April 03, 2026 11:35 AM (Ia/+0)

126 Have a great day, everyone.

The tax prep nightmare continues.

Posted by: NaCly Dog at April 03, 2026 11:35 AM (u82oZ)

127 124 I would like and subscribe.

Posted by: toby928(c) at April 03, 2026 11:35 AM (4NO2D)

=======

Yeah, but what about ringing that bell?

Posted by: TheJamesMadison, discovering British horror with Hammer Films at April 03, 2026 11:36 AM (hAotW)

128 I work with a lady who has the trifecta; vocal fry, uptalking, and Valley Girl accent.

She's nice, but I find it grating to the extreme.

Posted by: Pug Mahon at April 03, 2026 11:36 AM (PSEDc)

129 It should be obvious by now but the person who will win the Democrat nomination is whomever the Party's leadership decides they want to win the nomination. They gave up on free and fair elections long ago.

Posted by: JackStraw at April 03, 2026 11:36 AM (viF8m)

130 You'd think someone running for the dempreznom would be disqualified for saying anything sane.

When I first read this, I thought you were talking about some new drug.

Don't take Dempreznom if you're allergic to Dempreznom.

Posted by: Archimedes at April 03, 2026 11:36 AM (Riz8t)

131 Also see lots of articles a F-15E was shot down over southern Iran

Posted by: Skip at April 03, 2026 11:36 AM (Ia/+0)

132 The tax prep nightmare continues.
Posted by: NaCly Dog at April 03, 2026 11:35 AM (u82oZ)

I just sent a check that was about what my first 3 cars cost, combined.

Posted by: r hennigantx at April 03, 2026 11:36 AM (/+uur)

133
The Chosen.

Posted by: Come And See at April 03, 2026 11:37 AM (2Ez/1)

134 Rahm has realized that there's a lane for "normal" and "competent" democrats to run for prez. He's nothing if not an opportunist.

Gavin is trying to do "normal" but he has no chance of also occupying the "competent" lane.

Posted by: ballistic at April 03, 2026 11:37 AM (oqH4h)

135 Somehow the commercials are always at 11 so I can sure as hell hear them. Will wake my up from a midnight nap and get my ass into be.

Posted by: Jukin the Deplorable and Totally Unserious at April 03, 2026 11:37 AM (xvV+O)

136 I too have started watching a few series on the tube. NCIS Origins, Tracker, and RJ Decker I like but damn it Hollywood, quit shoving the homo bullshit down our throats. When that crap starts, I enjoy the sound of silence and return to my book.

Posted by: Diogenes at April 03, 2026 11:37 AM (2WIwB)

137 > I work with a lady who has the trifecta; vocal fry, uptalking, and Valley Girl accent.
----------
The broad on "The Five" (FOX News show) Jessica Tarlov. I hear her speak and want to choke the life out of her.

Posted by: Martini Farmer at April 03, 2026 11:38 AM (AkEZC)

138 134 Gavin is trying to do "normal" but he has no chance of also occupying the "competent" lane.

Posted by: ballistic at April 03, 2026 11:37 AM (oqH4h)

=======

This is a gross misread of what Newsom is doing.

He's, at best, trying to be the Democrats' Trump by being vulgar and confrontational.

But, he combines that with being completely brainless and unable to think his way out of a paper bag, so his stated policies change based on the interview. "Oh, yeah, we should protect girls in sports," to "Oh, yeah, trans-girls are the only real girls" in back to back interviews.

Posted by: TheJamesMadison, discovering British horror with Hammer Films at April 03, 2026 11:38 AM (hAotW)

139 Rahm the ballerina?

Posted by: fd at April 03, 2026 11:39 AM (uW6NG)

140 The tax prep nightmare continues.
Posted by: NaCly Dog at April 03, 2026 11:35 AM (u82oZ)

I just sent a check that was about what my first 3 cars cost, combined.

Posted by: r hennigantx
---

Just "delay" paying your taxes like traitor Fartswell did, does, and will continue to do.

Posted by: Jukin the Deplorable and Totally Unserious at April 03, 2026 11:39 AM (xvV+O)

141 >>>blast the sound effects and musical score through your TV when set at low volume but require you turn your volume up another 10-15 notches to hear what people are saying.

I have a Sony soundbar that has a button on the remote that when selected is supposed to accentuate 'voice' and dull somewhat the other sound inputs. Nice concept, but it's barely noticeable when selected.

Posted by: one hour sober at April 03, 2026 11:39 AM (Y1sOo)

142 and there was the trigger warning of violence etc at the beginning and it also said "foul language."
Posted by: Just Some Guy at April 03, 2026 11:35 AM (q3u5l)

I love the trigger warnings for horror movies. Yeah, alcohol use and foul language are the most disturbing things about this movie.

Posted by: Stateless - He ain't heavy, he's my dog. Old, but full of life. at April 03, 2026 11:40 AM (Sco7b)

143 I saw The Five for the first time yesterday and came to the conclusion that all of those people are retarded.

Posted by: fd at April 03, 2026 11:40 AM (uW6NG)

144 the Unintelligible, Artistic Mumble

The bigger issue is the autistic mumble, as best shown by the fat black they/them hologram SAM on Star Feet Learing Center. Sadly, no focused examples to share on YouTube, and I won't subject anyone to longer samples lol

Posted by: Modern at April 03, 2026 11:40 AM (JCZqz)

145 I work with a lady who has the trifecta; vocal fry, uptalking, and Valley Girl accent.

She's nice, but I find it grating to the extreme.

Obligatory:

https://youtu.be/F2y5q31E1gQ

Posted by: Archimedes at April 03, 2026 11:40 AM (Riz8t)

146 Pfizer and BioNTech Forced to Shut Down COVID-19 Booster Shot Trials

The company admitted it was “unable to generate relevant data” because recruitment had effectively hit a brick wall.

Reports indicate that more than 80% of potential recruits didn’t even make it past pre-screening, or simply refused to participate.

Posted by: r hennigantx at April 03, 2026 11:41 AM (/+uur)

147 I'm seeing some positive things about The Hail Mary Project.
Might actually plunk down some money and go see it.

Posted by: Quarter Twenty at April 03, 2026 11:41 AM (2Ez/1)

148 What is vocal fry ?

Posted by: tubal at April 03, 2026 11:42 AM (pDt9x)

149 147 I'm seeing some positive things about The Hail Mary Project.
Might actually plunk down some money and go see it.

Posted by: Quarter Twenty at April 03, 2026 11:41 AM (2Ez/1)

======

Ace should write something about it.

Posted by: TheJamesMadison, discovering British horror with Hammer Films at April 03, 2026 11:42 AM (hAotW)

150 Rahm the ballerina?

Posted by: fd

Yup. Sadly, he's still the most normal of all their candidates.

Posted by: Archimedes at April 03, 2026 11:42 AM (Riz8t)

151 What is vocal fry ?

See #145.

Posted by: Archimedes at April 03, 2026 11:42 AM (Riz8t)

152 150 Rahm the ballerina?

Posted by: fd

Yup. Sadly, he's still the most normal of all their candidates.

Posted by: Archimedes at April 03, 2026 11:42 AM (Riz8t)

=======

And the teachers' unions will make an example of him for his heterodoxy.

Posted by: TheJamesMadison, discovering British horror with Hammer Films at April 03, 2026 11:42 AM (hAotW)

153 When I first read this, I thought you were talking about some new drug.

Posted by: Archimedes at April 03, 2026 11:36 AM (Riz8t)

I think the FDA has a regulation that all new drugs be given a name that sounds like a small village in Italy.

Posted by: Auspex at April 03, 2026 11:42 AM (Y8DZL)

154 Isn't Rahm the one who gave us "Never let a crisis go to waste?" If so, it doesn't really matter that he's sorta kinda normal for a dem -- he'll still go full left the second he gets the chance.

Posted by: Just Some Guy at April 03, 2026 11:44 AM (q3u5l)

155 "Sadly, he's still the most normal of all their candidates.
Posted by: Archimedes "

He's an evil SOB and probably a faggot cocksucker too. I guess that's kind of normal for a Democrat.

Posted by: fd at April 03, 2026 11:44 AM (uW6NG)

156 As a young man, Demosthenes (384–322 BCE) suffered from a speech impediment — possibly a stutter or difficulty with certain sounds — which made his early speech unclear. To improve his articulation, he developed a rigorous personal regimen. According to Plutarch and other ancient sources, he practiced speaking with stones or pebbles in his mouth.

... like Communism, the good speech is just over the horizon

Posted by: SMOD at April 03, 2026 11:44 AM (RHGPo)

157 151 What is vocal fry ?

See #145.
Posted by: Archimedes at April 03, 2026 11:42 AM (Riz8t)

Ah. Got it thanks. Don’t hear that around here. Ozarks.

Posted by: tubal at April 03, 2026 11:45 AM (pDt9x)

158 Rahm's full name is Rahm Israel Emanuel. I'm surprised they haven't physically kicked him out of the Democratic Party.

I don't think you're going to be able to get that big cloud back inside that shiny plutonium sphere, Rahm. The Democratic Party has nuked itself.

WRT closed captioning: I accepted a long time ago that I'm 29 years old and pretty much leave it on all the time now.

I, too, am enjoying the Marshals show, along with several other Taylor Sheridan series. Landman is especially good, IMO.

I also recently started on Yellowstone, but you know what? I may not finish it. If I'd seen it first, I don't know that I've have tried any of his other stuff. All the characters appear to be evil shitheads, but not in a way that I find entertaining (see, for example, "I, Claudius"...shitheads, but entertaining).

Posted by: Rodrigo Borgia at April 03, 2026 11:45 AM (IG3/x)

159 I use CC all of the time, but I gotta say, my older Samsung TV has great speakers... stereo effects go almost 180 degrees sometimes.

Often I can actually look at the face of the person talking on-screen, and understand them!

Posted by: SSBN 656 (G) at April 03, 2026 11:46 AM (dmDsy)

160 Isn't Rahm the one who gave us "Never let a crisis go to waste?" If so, it doesn't really matter that he's sorta kinda normal for a dem -- he'll still go full left the second he gets the chance.

Of course, but he's 66, and I think he views this as his last chance to have an impact on the direction of the Democrats.

Posted by: Archimedes at April 03, 2026 11:46 AM (Riz8t)

161 Along with vocal fry, let us also bash those who do "Upspeak" where every damn sentence has to end in a question mark.

There should be loopholes in the law that cover people who physically correct that problem.

Posted by: NR Pax at April 03, 2026 11:46 AM (NR6c1)

162 Here, for all of you doing taxes. Rick Mercers' 45 second video celebrating Canadian tax time called "Knee in my Package."

https://tinyurl.com/3cufrk82

Posted by: Stateless - He ain't heavy, he's my dog. Old, but full of life. at April 03, 2026 11:47 AM (Sco7b)

163 I think the problem with unintelligible voices is also due to the mixing of the audio with other sound tracks

Posted by: Elric The Blade at April 03, 2026 11:47 AM (iFTx/)

164 I leave closed captioning on all the time now. The hearing isn't completely shot, but it ain't what it used to be. These days if I start to watch a movie and the screen tells me captioning isn't available, I find something else to watch.

Posted by: Just Some Guy at April 03, 2026 11:47 AM (q3u5l)

165 According to Plutarch and other ancient sources, he practiced speaking with stones or pebbles in his mouth.
Posted by: SMOD

"With blackest moss the flowerpots were thickly crusted, one and all."

Posted by: Bulg at April 03, 2026 11:48 AM (77rzZ)

166 Glad to know someone else is having trouble with understanding dialogue in movies!
I thought it was just me

Posted by: rick9911 at April 03, 2026 11:48 AM (3seEd)

167 > But, he combines that with being completely brainless and unable to think his way out of a paper bag
Posted by: TheJamesMadison, discovering British horror with Hammer Films at April 03, 2026 11:38 AM (hAotW)

I believe Larry Correia described him as a "ziplock bag of hair gel", or maybe that was Mitt Romney. Two of a kind, there.

Posted by: Rodrigo Borgia at April 03, 2026 11:49 AM (IG3/x)

168 148 What is vocal fry ?
Posted by: tubal at April 03, 2026 11:42 AM (pDt9x)

"Vocal fry" is a style of cooking where sounds are immersed in a hot liquid and "fried" to seal in the musicality of the sounds. Various oils can be used in this process, such as banana oil, marmot oil, or pipe wrench oil. Other modes of cooking vocals include vocal saute, and vocal sous-vide.

Posted by: ChatGPT at April 03, 2026 11:50 AM (skR0U)

169 Personally, I have the gripe with sound levels on my TV.
The cable networks (including NBC, CBS and ABC) sound about right at 65-80 on my volume control. Meanwhile, YouTube is great at 24. Prime at 34. When I switch between the two, I either can't hear it or it blasts out.

Perhaps, the TV manufacturers should have a master volume level for each input to the TV.

Posted by: SMOD at April 03, 2026 11:50 AM (RHGPo)

170 It's airshow season again. I know this because the Blue Angels have been flying over my house three times this week during practice sessions, including at this moment.

I don't mind the noise -- sound of freedom and all that --- but, man, those engines on the D-model F/A-18s rattle the doors and windows something fierce.

Posted by: one hour sober at April 03, 2026 11:50 AM (Y1sOo)

171 145 I work with a lady who has the trifecta; vocal fry, uptalking, and Valley Girl accent.

She's nice, but I find it grating to the extreme.

Obligatory:

https://youtu.be/F2y5q31E1gQ
Posted by: Archimedes at April 03, 2026 11:40 AM (Riz8t)

haha!

Posted by: m at April 03, 2026 11:50 AM (fNISR)

172 Another positive about CC… I like to watch British shows (like old Poirot’s) and the accents make it hard to understand what’s being said sometimes… the CC solves that problem as well…. Heck I now know what some of those French phrases are that the little Belgian speaks so quickly!
Posted by: LinusVanPelt at April 03, 2026

***
The new All Creatures Great and Small, with the characters' Yorkshire and Scots accents, is like that; CC is great. Though some shows with foreign terms will display the actual words in the captions, while others simply say "Speaks French."

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere at April 03, 2026 11:51 AM (wzUl9)

173 "The Shield" is back on Prime if you missed it 20 years ago.

Posted by: mr tmz at April 03, 2026 11:51 AM (rJ48h)

174 Great, now I want a Blue Seal cheesecake crepe. (Okinawan company known for their ice cream crepes, started postwar and named for the American concept of "blue ribbon.")

Posted by: pookysgirl is going to have to settle for Culver's at April 03, 2026 11:51 AM (Wt5PA)

175 "Vocal fry" is a style of cooking where sounds are immersed in a hot liquid and "fried" to seal in the musicality of the sounds. Various oils can be used in this process, such as banana oil, marmot oil, or pipe wrench oil. Other modes of cooking vocals include vocal saute, and vocal sous-vide.
Posted by: ChatGPT at April 03, 2026

***
Hey, man, nice marmot oil.

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere at April 03, 2026 11:52 AM (wzUl9)

176 " I once wrote a piece about David Zaslav’s looting of Warner Bros Discovery after he ran the company into the ground while extracting generational wealth for himself."

I think I've tossed in this bit of insider info at some point in the past, but it bears repeating;

A lot of what has happened to the former various bits of Warner Bros can be attributed to a crack-smoking scheme that ATT sold everyone (by which I mean execs, boards, etc) about a decade ago on about how they were going to try and turn into some world-spanning evil panopticon focusing on hoovering up customer data and leveraging it to magically drive consumers to their products, services, and content.

All manner of bizarre shuffling in their business units and product offerings resulted from this. The primary goal became "get an app/user presence for as many users and devices as possible", trusting that they'd just... somehow be able to do something with the info they collected.

Obviously this was fucking retarded, and I'm not sure if they were serious or if it was just cover for the usual golden parachute bullshit.

Posted by: heya at April 03, 2026 11:52 AM (tU7vi)

177 I could never hear what that guy in the Little Tramp movies was saying.

Posted by: Bulg at April 03, 2026 11:52 AM (77rzZ)

178 I think the origin of uptalking probably comes from kindergarten teachers which, of course, are almost all female.
It's a way of explaining the simplest concept to a five year old and since it works there, hey, let's just talk that way all the time.

Posted by: Quarter Twenty at April 03, 2026 11:52 AM (2Ez/1)

179 In that spirit, here is a Japanese band performing the bluegrass classic "Fox on the Run."
________

"Huh??"

-- Sweet

Posted by: Elric The Blade at April 03, 2026 11:53 AM (iFTx/)

180 173 "The Shield" is back on Prime if you missed it 20 years ago.
Posted by: mr tmz at April 03, 2026 11:51 AM (rJ48h)

I could never get interested in that show because after the corny Commish I just couldn’t take Chiklis seriously as a tough guy

Posted by: LinusVanPelt at April 03, 2026 11:54 AM (aSzdc)

181 Yeah, the Little Tramp was always unintelligible. And ditto Harpo Marx.

Posted by: Just Some Guy at April 03, 2026 11:54 AM (q3u5l)

182 I stretch my spine and it feels great.....then I sit......and whatever is moving, moves back to the bad place and the pain is quite unnerving.

Then, it just sucks again.

Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at April 03, 2026 11:54 AM (Zz0t1)

183 "With blackest moss the flowerpots were thickly crusted, one and all."
Posted by: Bulg at April 03, 2026 11:48 AM

*gulp*

Posted by: RedMindBlueState at April 03, 2026 11:54 AM (kgE5c)

184 I stretch my spine and it feels great.....then I sit......and whatever is moving, moves back to the bad place and the pain is quite unnerving.

Then, it just sucks again.
Posted by: Sponge

What'd you do to yourself?

Posted by: Bulg at April 03, 2026 11:55 AM (77rzZ)

185 Buck, you are not alone in noticing the mumbling dialog of modern movies. It drives Mr. Black and I crazy. I can only think of one reason it's done, and that's to make the conversation seem more realistic? I can't really put my finger on it, but it's extremely annoying.

Posted by: Lady in Black at April 03, 2026 11:55 AM (qBdHI)

186 170 It's airshow season again. I know this because the Blue Angels have been flying over my house three times this week during practice sessions, including at this moment.

I don't mind the noise -- sound of freedom and all that --- but, man, those engines on the D-model F/A-18s rattle the doors and windows something fierce.
Posted by: one hour sober at April 03, 2026 11:50 AM (Y1sOo)

I live near the Pease Air National Guard base in NH. All the A-10s that just went over to the Middle East had a layover there. They are loud - and it is beautiful to hear. At least if they aren't coming for you.

Posted by: Our Country is Screwed at April 03, 2026 11:55 AM (N39Ws)

187 *gulp*
Posted by: RedMindBlueState

Ha! Glad someone got the reference.

Posted by: Bulg at April 03, 2026 11:55 AM (77rzZ)

188 Another thot is that the sound is made for 1000 dollar sound bars and proper decoding like Dolby.

Posted by: r hennigantx at April 03, 2026 11:56 AM (/+uur)

189 Oh, hi!

Posted by: Eromero at April 03, 2026 11:56 AM (rR03l)

190
What'd you do to yourself?
Posted by: Bulg at April 03, 2026 11:55 AM (77rzZ)

I'm guessing it was all the jumping and thrashing on un-suspensioned 3-Wheelers when I was a yute paying be back in my 29's.

Herniated disk or some such.....I guess.

Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at April 03, 2026 11:56 AM (Zz0t1)

191 I have the same problem with the mumbling. Closed captions don't really help, as I can't keep up most times. I have an advantage though, I can pair my hearing aids with the TV.

Posted by: javems at April 03, 2026 11:56 AM (zFsEm)

192 Democrats
-----

We've seen that they can pluck a sleeper agent out of pretty much anywhere.

Posted by: XTC at April 03, 2026 10:48 AM (iXqHn)

You know who else can pluck a sleeper agent out of pretty much nowhere?

Posted by: ... at April 03, 2026 11:56 AM (mWRBW)

193 They are loud - and it is beautiful to hear. At least if they aren't coming for you.
Posted by: Our Country is Screwed at April 03, 2026 11:55 AM (N39Ws)

You dont even hear the brrrrrrrppppppp if they are aiming for you.

Posted by: r hennigantx at April 03, 2026 11:57 AM (/+uur)

194 Some of the closed captions leave a bit to be desired as well. I've seen some with "indecipherable" or "unintelligible" in the caption. The other night I pulled up an episode of I Spy in Amazon prime video, and there was the trigger warning of violence etc at the beginning and it also said "foul language." I thought, say what? Sure enough, during the show the captioning misinterpreted something Robert Culp said and plugged in an f-bomb.
Posted by: Just Some Guy at April 03, 2026

***
If there was a show from the '60s that needs closed captioning, it's I Spy. I grew up with it and love it; the buddy comedy dialogue between Kelly and Scotty is fantastic. But you need to be able to hear it or read it. They both were kind of murmurers sometimes when working on that show. Culp by himself was excellent at enunciation.

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere at April 03, 2026 11:57 AM (wzUl9)

195 Take care of yourself, Sponge. Back pain is the absolute worst.

Posted by: Bulg at April 03, 2026 11:57 AM (77rzZ)

196 I stretch my spine and it feels great.....then I sit......and whatever is moving, moves back to the bad place and the pain is quite unnerving.

Then, it just sucks again.
Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at April 03, 2026 11:54 AM (Zz0t1)

Sorry about that Sponge… back pain is the worst.

Saying the pain is unnerving is a nice play on words seeing as how there’s probably a pinched nerve involved

Posted by: LinusVanPelt at April 03, 2026 11:58 AM (aSzdc)

197 Obligatory:

https://youtu.be/F2y5q31E1gQ

--

Now I get what vocal fry is! I've read descriptions, but it didn't click. Now it does.

Posted by: Lady in Black at April 03, 2026 11:58 AM (qBdHI)

198 >>>What is vocal fry ?

Posted by: tubal

>I always considered to be like Rod Stewart's singing voice after smoking a pack of non-filter Camel ciggies. Gravel in the gizzard.

Posted by: Rev. Wishbone at April 03, 2026 11:58 AM (UqSya)

199 It's not just you, Buck; I have the same complaint.

Posted by: sock_rat_eez at April 03, 2026 11:58 AM (MIIRH)

200 GatewayPundit.....busy week

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced the arrest of Jordanian national Salah Sarsour in Milwaukee. Sarsour, who is President of the Board of Directors of the Islamic Society of Milwaukee (ISM) — Wisconsin’s largest mosque, is being held in ICE custody in Indiana.

Sarsour is also a board member of the national pro-Palestinian advocacy organization American Muslims for Palestine (AMP).

DHS says Sarsour is a terrorist and was convicted of throwing Molotov cocktails at the homes of Israeli soldiers. Sarsour then allegedly lied on his U.S. immigration applications to obtain a green card under President Bill Clinton.

Posted by: Stateless - He ain't heavy, he's my dog. Old, but full of life. at April 03, 2026 11:59 AM (Sco7b)

201 Hillbilly Bears Pa

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iG6GLtl6G04

Posted by: r hennigantx at April 03, 2026 11:59 AM (/+uur)

202 >I always considered to be like Rod Stewart's singing voice after smoking a pack of non-filter Camel ciggies. Gravel in the gizzard.
Posted by: Rev. Wishbone at April 03, 2026

***
Or like Peter Falk as Columbo.

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere at April 03, 2026 11:59 AM (wzUl9)

203 200 DHS says Sarsour is a terrorist and was convicted of throwing Molotov cocktails at the homes of Israeli soldiers. Sarsour then allegedly lied on his U.S. immigration applications to obtain a green card under President Bill Clinton.

Posted by: Stateless - He ain't heavy, he's my dog. Old, but full of life. at April 03, 2026 11:59 AM (Sco7b)

======

The admin already denaturalized two non-American born citizens for lying on their citizenship applications. Happened in the last couple of weeks.

So...this would be a fun high profile continuation.

Posted by: TheJamesMadison, discovering British horror with Hammer Films at April 03, 2026 12:00 PM (hAotW)

204 I always assume not making out dialog in movies is my hearing

Posted by: Skip at April 03, 2026 12:00 PM (Ia/+0)

205 >>I live near the Pease Air National Guard base in NH. All the A-10s that just went over to the Middle East had a layover there. They are loud - and it is beautiful to hear.

The four-ship Blues flew over a few minutes ago and set off the alarm on my neighbor's car parked in his driveway.

Posted by: one hour sober at April 03, 2026 12:01 PM (Y1sOo)

206 Wolfus -
I do need the captions on I Spy (and just about everything else) now, but I saw that show during its first runs back in the mid-60s and don't recall ever having trouble making out the dialog. I'm beginning to think that there's a slight possibility that I am becoming a certified old guy.

Posted by: Just Some Guy at April 03, 2026 12:01 PM (q3u5l)

207
Saying the pain is unnerving is a nice play on words seeing as how there’s probably a pinched nerve involved
Posted by: LinusVanPelt at April 03, 2026 11:58 AM (aSzdc)

I've had several xrays of my back over the years and no one has really found anything or said anything is 'wrong.'

However, now, I can feel things moving, which is a bit unsettling. I can get on the inversion table, lay back 3/4 vertical and push to stretch everything real good. I feel it pop back into where it feels great. I go about 10 minutes and if I can go back horizontal without it popping back, it feels great.

Then a movement moves whatever back out of whack and it's unsettling. I can't really point to a thing that I did to really piss it off, but this is the worst it's been.

Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at April 03, 2026 12:02 PM (Zz0t1)

208 Herniated disk or some such.....I guess.MRI you never know

Posted by: doug at April 03, 2026 12:02 PM (Hy+R4)

209 The four-ship Blues flew over a few minutes ago and set off the alarm on my neighbor's car parked in his driveway.
Posted by: one hour sober at April 03, 2026 12:01 PM (Y1sOo)

The Blues at Pensacola look and feel like you could reach out and touch them.

Posted by: r hennigantx at April 03, 2026 12:02 PM (/+uur)

210
DHS says Sarsour is a terrorist and was convicted of throwing Molotov cocktails at the homes of Israeli soldiers. Sarsour then allegedly lied on his U.S. immigration applications to obtain a green card under President Bill Clinton.

Posted by: Stateless - He ain't heavy, he's my dog. Old, but full of life. at April 03, 2026 11:59 AM (Sco7b)

Moar of this. By the thousands, please.

Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at April 03, 2026 12:03 PM (Zz0t1)

211 If there was a show from the '60s that needs closed captioning, it's I Spy. I grew up with it and love it; the buddy comedy dialogue between Kelly and Scotty is fantastic. But you need to be able to hear it or read it. They both were kind of murmurers sometimes when working on that show. Culp by himself was excellent at enunciation.
Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere at April 03, 2026 11:57 AM (wzUl9)
It was the roofies. Oh, you said enunciation.

Posted by: Eromero at April 03, 2026 12:03 PM (rR03l)

212 The admin already denaturalized two non-American born citizens for lying on their citizenship applications. Happened in the last couple of weeks.

So...this would be a fun high profile continuation.
Posted by: TheJamesMadison, discovering British horror with Hammer Films at April 03, 2026 12:00 PM (hAotW)

Especially if.....

What are the Hammer films like? Where could I find them if I'm interested?

Posted by: Stateless - He ain't heavy, he's my dog. Old, but full of life. at April 03, 2026 12:03 PM (Sco7b)

213 Japanese bluegrass so cool!

A wonderful thing has happened, all because of our President breaking the ice with one simple remark!

Posted by: sock_rat_eez at April 03, 2026 12:03 PM (MIIRH)

214 This is a gross misread of what Newsom is doing.

He's, at best, trying to be the Democrats' Trump by being vulgar and confrontational.

But, he combines that with being completely brainless and unable to think his way out of a paper bag, so his stated policies change based on the interview. "Oh, yeah, we should protect girls in sports," to "Oh, yeah, trans-girls are the only real girls" in back to back interviews.
Posted by: TheJamesMadison, discovering British horror with Hammer Films at April 03, 2026 11:38 AM (hAotW)
-----
Yeah, hence the "no chance of occupying the 'competent' lane" remark.

He's a nepo baby retard. That doesn't mean he's not --trying-- to be "normal."

Posted by: ballistic at April 03, 2026 12:03 PM (oqH4h)

215 Does anyone think that if these 2 pilots missing in action in Iran get found by the enemy before we get them will it severely impact Trump's good will for this "war"?

Posted by: Jaimo at April 03, 2026 12:03 PM (BCuCF)

216 Herniated disk or some such.....I guess.MRI you never know
Posted by: doug at April 03, 2026 12:02 PM (Hy+R4

I've requested an MRI multiple times, each of which is denied by insurance. I just can't pay outright for one at this time.

Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at April 03, 2026 12:03 PM (Zz0t1)

217 Oh, denaturalizing Linda Sarsour would be awesome!!

Posted by: Lizzy at April 03, 2026 12:04 PM (4KUe5)

218 213 Japanese bluegrass so cool!

A wonderful thing has happened, all because of our President breaking the ice with one simple remark!
Posted by: sock_rat_eez at April 03, 2026 12:03 PM (MIIRH)
-----
The Japanese have been big fans of a lot of American culture for a while now, including traditional and bluegrass music. Al Gore's Amazing Internet has finally connected all of us, which is cool.

Posted by: ballistic at April 03, 2026 12:05 PM (oqH4h)

219
Another thot is that the sound is made for 1000 dollar sound bars and proper decoding like Dolby.

Posted by: r hennigantx at April 03, 2026 11:56 AM

it's easier to dub over mumbled, quiet dialog for releases in non-english speaking markets

that's why there's no real conversations or soliloquies anymore; just grunts and barks and zippy one-liners

Posted by: AltonJackson at April 03, 2026 12:05 PM (tljrc)

220 I do need the captions on I Spy (and just about everything else) now, but I saw that show during its first runs back in the mid-60s and don't recall ever having trouble making out the dialog. I'm beginning to think that there's a slight possibility that I am becoming a certified old guy.
Posted by: Just Some Guy at April 03, 2026

***
Our TV at home was a simple mono set, for one thing, and it was right near the window unit A/C. Both of these made nearly everything hard to distinguish. That said, *most* of the Kelly-Scotty dialog was just fine.

"Forget about the three dollars."

"I'm doin' William Shakespeare on the typewriter here, and you want me to forget about the three dollars?"

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere at April 03, 2026 12:05 PM (wzUl9)

221 He's an evil SOB and probably a faggot cocksucker too

As opposed to a fiercely heterosexual one?

Posted by: Corey! at April 03, 2026 12:05 PM (gKWVE)

222 denied by insurance. Fuckers

Posted by: doug at April 03, 2026 12:05 PM (Hy+R4)

223 I've requested an MRI multiple times, each of which is denied by insurance. I just can't pay outright for one at this time.
Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at April 03, 2026 12:03 PM (Zz0t1)

That’s infuriating because the medical system should address pain without hesitation

Posted by: LinusVanPelt at April 03, 2026 12:05 PM (aSzdc)

224 212 What are the Hammer films like? Where could I find them if I'm interested?

Posted by: Stateless - He ain't heavy, he's my dog. Old, but full of life. at April 03, 2026 12:03 PM (Sco7b)

========

I'm still in the 50s. Their horror movies, which people know the company for, will start for me soon with The Curse of Frankenstein.

So far, it's been more than 40 cheap movies, mostly BBC radio serial adaptations and noirs. A handful of comedies and even a couple of musicals.

There have been a handful of joys, but it's mostly...content. B-movies (in the literal sense) just made to quickly make small profits and keep cash flow positive from one production to the next.

I'm hoping I enjoy things more consistently once Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee get brought on.

Posted by: TheJamesMadison, discovering British horror with Hammer Films at April 03, 2026 12:06 PM (hAotW)

225 My friend and I saw Avatar 2 - I wasn't really interested but it was good.

I had in the rubber earplugs I use when mowing the lawn and still made out 99.5% of dialogue. Movie theaters are insanely loud.

Posted by: Stateless - He ain't heavy, he's my dog. Old, but full of life. at April 03, 2026 12:06 PM (Sco7b)

226
Sympathy for the back issue! I had the same thing a couple years ago and it fortunately went away... for now. Walking and diet seemed to help.

Posted by: Auspex at April 03, 2026 12:06 PM (Y8DZL)

227 >>>Throckmorton’s First Law of Live Music: “If There’s an Upright Bass in the Band, It’s Probably Going to be Good”

Speaking of..

Rev Horton Heat will be here in Richmond this Sunday and I have my ticket to go

Posted by: Blanco at April 03, 2026 12:07 PM (sW/8y)

228 This week had to set up a appointment for a MRI, won't happen until July

Posted by: Skip at April 03, 2026 12:07 PM (Ia/+0)

229 Spent my summers in the 1970s in Gulf Shores. Four Blue Angels would come streaking down the beach right over the surf at a very low altitude. Suddenly when they approached a crowd of people, one would flip over and fly upside down.

Because they could.

Posted by: Quarter Twenty at April 03, 2026 12:08 PM (2Ez/1)

230 I watch online shows, occasionally. I thought the problem was with my computer. I check the volume; it's on max. I still can't understand what people are saying. I need to rewind and put my ear to the speaker. I still can't understand. I'll turn the show/movie off. I know it's not me. I can hear other things quite fine.

Posted by: hadsil at April 03, 2026 12:08 PM (Xht4H)

231 Nood. Iran.

Posted by: I used to have a different nic at April 03, 2026 12:08 PM (ExV1e)

232 The admin already denaturalized two non-American born citizens for lying on their citizenship applications.

Posted by: TheJamesMadison, discovering British horror with Hammer Films at April 03, 2026 12:00 PM (hAotW)

I read that as "denatured," and I am perfectly happy with that outcome.

Posted by: CharlieBrown'sDildo at April 03, 2026 12:09 PM (n9ltV)

233 I'm hoping I enjoy things more consistently once Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee get brought on.
Posted by: TheJamesMadison, discovering British horror with Hammer Films at April 03, 2026 12:06 PM (hAotW

Cool. Thank you.

I'm watching brutal stuff but a lot of the asian stuff is heavy on characters and not very graphic. And I do like older films and British stuff.

Posted by: Stateless - He ain't heavy, he's my dog. Old, but full of life. at April 03, 2026 12:09 PM (Sco7b)

234 The whole mumble thing seems to have started with Marlon Brando and James Dean. What's worse is the sound track playing while they mumble. I've seen a shit ton of lesser programs where the sound track, often appropriate for pron, is louder than the guy/gal doing the narration.

Posted by: pudinhead at April 03, 2026 12:09 PM (n17eQ)

235
232 The admin already denaturalized two non-American born citizens for lying on their citizenship applications.

Posted by: TheJamesMadison, discovering British horror with Hammer Films at April 03, 2026 12:00 PM (hAotW)

I read that as "denatured," and I am perfectly happy with that outcome.

Posted by: CharlieBrown'sDildo at April 03, 2026 12:09 PM (n9ltV)

======

Six of one...half a dozen of the other...

Posted by: TheJamesMadison, discovering British horror with Hammer Films at April 03, 2026 12:09 PM (hAotW)

236 The only thing that occasionally interfered with my catching a bit of Culp-Cosby dialog in I Spy was my own laughter at an earlier moment in the exchange. Jeez, those guys were terrific together in that show.

Posted by: Just Some Guy at April 03, 2026 12:09 PM (q3u5l)

237 The Blues at Pensacola look and feel like you could reach out and touch them.
Posted by: r hennigantx at April 03, 2026 12:02 PM (/+uur)
-----
I got one of the opposing solos give me a sneak pass halfway through my backswing at a golf course in Pensacola. lol

He knew what he was doing!

Posted by: ballistic at April 03, 2026 12:09 PM (oqH4h)

238 229 Spent my summers in the 1970s in Gulf Shores. Four Blue Angels would come streaking down the beach right over the surf at a very low altitude. Suddenly when they approached a crowd of people, one would flip over and fly upside down.

Because they could.
Posted by: Quarter Twenty at April 03, 2026 12:08 PM (2Ez/1)
-----
Helps with the raging priapic erection the dude clearly had.

Posted by: ballistic at April 03, 2026 12:10 PM (oqH4h)

239 Hollywood probably needs to be destroyed. If left around, it will inevitably affect the industries of countries like South Korea and Japan who do not yet produce woke garbage. Its magnetic pull even as it bleeds cash is baffling, but real. Let its ruins in Los Angeles serve as a warning to future generations.

Well, when we are in charge, in about 20 years or so, hollywood will be turned into an Islamic religious center for boys.

Posted by: American Muslims at April 03, 2026 12:11 PM (HUHft)

240 "Yeah, hence the "no chance of occupying the 'competent' lane" remark.

He's a nepo baby retard. That doesn't mean he's not --trying-- to be "normal."
Posted by: ballistic at April 03, 2026 12:03 PM (oqH4h)"

Newsom is such a non-entity talking head that he was stupid enough to get the jab instead of fake it, because nobody bothered to tell him.

Remember when he had the stroke or GB afterwards and had to hide from the public for weeks?

Posted by: heya at April 03, 2026 12:11 PM (ycedv)

241 and many Americans admire and enjoy aspects of Japanese culture, from anime to Zen.
But I really do think that PDT's joking remark opened up a new feeling between us, "that was a long time ago, we're past it, now we can be friendly" kind of thing.

Posted by: sock_rat_eez at April 03, 2026 12:11 PM (MIIRH)

242 One thing that quitting smoking has brought into clear focus is just how many people around me really need a severe beating.

Posted by: Duke Lowell at April 03, 2026 12:14 PM (2UnvF)

243 1) IF I was a Hollywood sound engineer, I too would do my best to save humanity by making the crap writing that comes out of Hollywood unintelligible.

2) Those Japanese guys are really good. Hasn't the whole X thing been great? It astonished me to find Japan has been thinking we didn't like them.

Posted by: Persnickety at April 03, 2026 12:14 PM (NXsA/)

244 The reasons that movies have such difficult to hear dialog is complicated. Its partly related to how movie theaters are designed: you are literally surrounded by dozens of speakers at pretty high volume so it mixes well in a movie theater. Partly its a deliberate effort to make home viewing less pleasing, because they want you to go to theaters. Partly it has to do with the changes in digital sound and mixing technology.

And I suspect very strongly that it related to the problem that all of entertainment: they pushed all the old guys who knew how to do this out of the business in the MeToo movement and they are just no good at it any longer

Posted by: Christopher R Taylor at April 03, 2026 12:17 PM (El6/E)

245 I'm hoping I enjoy things more consistently once Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee get brought on.
------------
TJM, is House on Haunted Hill on the list? Cuz that one scared the shit out of me when I was eight.

Posted by: pudinhead at April 03, 2026 12:19 PM (n17eQ)

246 IF I was a Hollywood sound engineer, I too would do my best to save humanity by making the crap writing that comes out of Hollywood unintelligible.

There is something to that.

Posted by: Christopher R Taylor at April 03, 2026 12:19 PM (El6/E)

247 James Caan in Rollerball had some of the worst mumbling dialogue I’ve ever seen

Posted by: Machiavelli at April 03, 2026 12:25 PM (hCD5k)

248 The sound guys in Hwood say that dialogue is so hard to understand bc the sound is pushed through so many different streaming systems, so a lot is lost. I think that's part of it but it's this affectation for naturalness that is the main reason. I would also include lighting so dim that it looks like the action is taking place in a closet. I stopped watching Scandal years ago for that reason--couldn't see it!

Posted by: PJ at April 03, 2026 12:30 PM (+jscL)

249 Thank you for the very kind shout out ... and I second the support for George MF Washington!

Posted by: Christian Toto at April 03, 2026 12:48 PM (58JWE)

250 I can't claim to have great hearing, but a big part of the problem is the loud background music during dialog. Why can't they reduce or eliminate music while a character is speaking?

Posted by: Ralph at April 03, 2026 01:25 PM (8WZD4)

251 "Throckmorton’s First Law of Live Music: “If There’s an Upright Bass in the Band, It’s Probably Going to be Good”"
I would say just the opposite. you get something like the stray cats.

Posted by: docweasel at April 03, 2026 01:37 PM (nxgNB)

252 Hey Christian. You are doing such great work. Keep it up.

Posted by: Buck Throckmorton at April 03, 2026 01:56 PM (EB8vC)

253 Speaking of recent Hollywood movies with whisper dialog, I have found that wearing headphones or AirPods solves the problem.
Wait a minute!
Don't sound editing engineers wear headphones when making the final cut?

Posted by: John at April 03, 2026 02:12 PM (0DsdP)

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