Our Hero De Niro

This week, the Mikes celebrate MikeBackAtYou's birthday by breaking the randomizer and digging into The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift, Justin Lin's cult-favorite detour into JDM car culture, drifting, and high-school exile in Japan. We break down the film's incredible soundtrack, practical racing sequences, and why this once-dismissed sequel now feels like one of the most distinctive entries in the entire franchise. Plus: Christopher Nolan knowing ball, vacation-posting etiquette, and the eternal truth that Han rules. Wikipedia page for The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift. Films recommended this episode:

• Better Luck Tomorrow
• The Driver
• 21 Jump Street

Follow Mike and Mike on Letterboxd @MikeBackAtYou and @mikethefab, email them at [email protected], check out their website ourherodeniro.com, and find them on social media at allmylinks.com/ourherodeniro. Next week: The King of Comedy

• YouTube: How Did Tokyo Become The Largest City On Earth?

This week, the Mikes dig into The Whisper Man, a brand-new Netflix thriller about grief, generational trauma, child abductions, and yet another very large De Niro-adjacent house full of bad vibes. We break down De Niro's subdued performance, the film's rushed father-son drama, and why its serial-killer mystery, supernatural flourishes, and prestige-streaming aesthetic never quite come together. Plus: acceptable child combat moves, comparisons to other De Niro horror films, and the Mikes' Family Guy doppelgängers. Wikipedia page for The Whisper Man. Films recommended this episode:

• Prisoners
• Midnight Mass

Follow Mike and Mike on Letterboxd @MikeBackAtYou and @mikethefab, email them at [email protected], check out their website ourherodeniro.com, and find them on social media at allmylinks.com/ourherodeniro. Next week: The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift

This week, the Mikes dig into Being Flynn, a bleak father-son drama about homelessness, addiction, writing, and the damage left behind by an absent parent. We break down De Niro's committed turn as a grandiose, self-mythologizing writer, Paul Dano's haunted performance as his estranged son, and why the film's heavy subject matter never quite hits as hard as it should. Plus: memoir title discourse, narration as a crutch, and the correct pronunciation of Paul Dano. Wikipedia page for Being Flynn. Films recommended this episode:

• Daddy Longlegs
• There Will Be Blood

Follow Mike and Mike on Letterboxd @MikeBackAtYou and @mikethefab, email them at [email protected], check out their website ourherodeniro.com, and find them on social media at allmylinks.com/ourherodeniro. Next week: The Whisper Man

This week, the Mikes finally dig into Silver Linings Playbook, David O. Russell's acclaimed romantic dramedy about mental health, family dysfunction, Eagles superstition, and finding connection in the aftermath of crisis. We break down De Niro's Oscar-nominated turn as Pat Sr., Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence's volatile chemistry, and whether the film's crowd-pleasing rom-com shape softens the darker, messier story underneath. Plus: book adaptation outrage, David O. Russell skepticism, and the emotional stakes of a five-out-of-ten dance routine. Wikipedia page for Silver Linings Playbook. Films recommended this episode:

• Punch-Drunk Love
• Whiplash

Follow Mike and Mike on Letterboxd @MikeBackAtYou and @mikethefab, email them at [email protected], check out their website ourherodeniro.com, and find them on social media at allmylinks.com/ourherodeniro. Next week: Being Flynn

This week, the Mikes dig into Jennifer on My Mind, a strange early-70s counterculture drama about a wealthy drifter, a self-destructive heroin addict, and a romance that seems doomed from the very beginning. We break down the film's bizarre tonal swings, Robert De Niro's blink-and-you'll-miss-it appearance, and why this forgotten curiosity never finds anything meaningful to say about addiction, grief, or alienation. Plus: disgusting Venetian canal water, the return of Manic Pixie Dream Girl discourse, and the world's worst body disposal plan. Wikipedia page for Jennifer on My Mind. Films recommended this episode:

• Across 110th Street
• Frances Ha

Follow Mike and Mike on Letterboxd @MikeBackAtYou and @mikethefab, email them at [email protected], check out their website ourherodeniro.com, and find them on social media at allmylinks.com/ourherodeniro. Next week: Silver Linings Playbook Supplemental link:

• Watch Jennifer on My Mind on YouTube

This week, the Mikes dig into Flawless, a late-90s dramedy about a stroke-stricken former security guard and a drag performer who form an unlikely bond through singing lessons in a crumbling Hell's Kitchen apartment building. We break down Philip Seymour Hoffman's electrifying performance, De Niro's surprisingly nuanced portrayal of recovery and prejudice, and why the film's heartfelt message gets buried beneath a baffling mix of crime thriller, social commentary, and campy melodrama. Plus: self-defense discourse, pickleball slander, and the ethics of euthanasia. Wikipedia page for Flawless. Films recommended this episode:

• Synecdoche, New York
• Gran Torino

Follow Mike and Mike on Letterboxd @MikeBackAtYou and @mikethefab, email them at [email protected], check out their website ourherodeniro.com, and find them on social media at allmylinks.com/ourherodeniro. Next week: Jennifer on My Mind

This week, the Mikes dig into Mistress, a little-seen Hollywood satire about a struggling filmmaker trying to get his passion project off the ground while a parade of producers, financiers, and romantic entanglements threaten to derail it. We break down the film's surprisingly stacked cast, De Niro's scene-stealing supporting turn, and why a movie about artistic compromise ends up feeling far more compromised than its characters realize. Plus: HBO's Arliss, the return of Car Talk, and an unexpectedly passionate conversation about the worst day of the week. Wikipedia page for Mistress. Films recommended this episode:

• Barton Fink
• The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou

Follow Mike and Mike on Letterboxd @MikeBackAtYou and @mikethefab, email them at [email protected], check out their website ourherodeniro.com, and find them on social media at allmylinks.com/ourherodeniro. Next week: Flawless

This week, the Mikes dig into Machete, Robert Rodriguez's gleefully grimy exploitation throwback about corrupt politicians, border vigilantism, and one very angry Danny Trejo. We break down Robert De Niro's cartoonishly evil senator, the film's surprisingly pointed immigration politics, and whether Rodriguez's grindhouse style is lovingly committed or just plain messy. Plus: hybrid car propaganda, the ethics of intestines-as-grappling-hooks, and why this movie accidentally became more relevant with time. Wikipedia page for Machete. Films recommended this episode:

• Black Dynamite
• RRR

Follow Mike and Mike on Letterboxd @MikeBackAtYou and @mikethefab, email them at [email protected], and find them on social media at allmylinks.com/ourherodeniro. Next week: Mistress

This week, the Mikes celebrate their 80th episode with Superlative Summit, a special awards-style detour through the De Niro characters they've covered so far. We break down the biggest weirdos, saddest men, most fragile egos, and most barbecue-advice-coded performances in the greater De Niro cinematic universe. Plus: reflecting on 80 episodes of De Niro scholarship, fragile masculinity discourse, and listener mail from the citizens of De Niro Nation. Follow Mike and Mike on Letterboxd @MikeBackAtYou and @mikethefab, email them at [email protected], check out their website ourherodeniro.com, and find them on social media at allmylinks.com/ourherodeniro. Next week: Machete

This week, the Mikes return to shark-infested waters for Land Shark, a special Shark Week act of penance after their infamous Shark Tale episode. We break down Mark Polonia's ultra-low-budget schlockfest, the paper-mache majesty of the land shark itself, and whether a movie this cheap can still have enough personality to justify its existence. Plus: the philosophy of bad-movie nights, surprisingly educational shark facts, and what driving a black BMW says about a person. Letterboxd page for Land Shark. Films recommended this episode:

• Dolemite is My Name
• ThanksKilling

Follow Mike and Mike on Letterboxd @MikeBackAtYou and @mikethefab, email them at [email protected], and find them on social media at allmylinks.com/ourherodeniro. Next week: 80th Episode Spectacular Supplemental link:

• Watch Land Shark on YouTube