THE REWATCHABLES · April 4, 2025
A 1997 action / thriller movie directed by Phillip Noyce—and decision no. 50 in the Hanks–Cruise tape.
ON THIS EPISODE
FROM THE CONVERSATION
WHY IT WORKS
WHAT DID NOT WORK
SCENES THEY KEPT COMING BACK TO
The episode opens with condolences and establishes The Saint as a Kilmer tribute pick.
Opening minutesThe hosts list multiple Kilmer disguises, accents, and looks as the core entertainment of the movie.
About 8 minKilmer seduces Shue through art, wine, and performative vulnerability, ending in a dramatic bloodletting moment.
About 48 minA bizarre underground club with gambling, prostitutes, and a mouse race becomes a memorable villain-space set piece.
About 40 minSimon and Emma sprint alongside the river ice, with Kilmer plunging into freezing water.
About 40 minShue strips down to warm Kilmer, producing a highly rewinded nineties seduction beat.
About 1:12The film closes with a public cold fusion demonstration that resolves the plot but feels like a reshoot-driven compromise.
About 48 minWHERE THEY DISAGREED
Bill SimmonsYes, it should have become a recurring series and even crossed over with Mission Impossible.
Kyle BrandtYes, the premise and disguises were repeatable, even if Mission Impossible executed the concept better.
Bill SimmonsHe is most compelling when he is disguised or playing a quirky role, not when he is simply Simon.
Kyle BrandtHe is weakest as plain Simon and strongest when the costume/voice gimmick is active.
Bill SimmonsMission Impossible ruined The Saint's chance to become a major franchise.
Kyle BrandtMission Impossible was superior and copied the best parts more effectively.
Bill SimmonsThe old myth of a difficult star added mystique and was part of his appeal.
Kyle BrandtHe was a passionate artist who didn't want to be overexposed or misunderstood.
Bill SimmonsThe final romantic ending works better and makes Shue happier.
Kyle BrandtThe darker alternate ending sounded more like a Mission Impossible-style action payoff.
Says Kilmer was the coolest character actor ever, with leading-man looks but better as a supporting or oddball presence.
Opening minutesFrames Kilmer as a serious actor who still had a playful, cooler-than-everyone aura.
Opening minutesArgues this should have been the start of multiple sequels and laments that Mission Impossible crowded it out.
About 8 minInsists the disguises are the movie's best feature and that the film is weakest when Kilmer is not in costume.
About 8 minLoves the long seduction sequence with the wine bottle, painting, and bloodletting as the movie's best scene set.
About 48 minCalls the ice-river run and rescue one of the film's best visual/action moments.
About 40 minCelebrates the late-90s electronic soundtrack as an important part of the movie's appeal.
About 32 minTreats Shue as a crucial part of the movie and a major 90s star whose career arc remains striking.
About 24 minSays he misses the old era of difficult-on-set, mythologized movie stars and their mystique.
About 8 minMocks Noyce for later saying he should have cast Russell Crowe, insisting he made the right choice with Kilmer.
About 1:12Directs a profane dismissal at Fiennes after his old quote calling The Saint boring.
About 1:12Treats the strip-down hypothermia scene as a high point and a 'nineties rewind hall of fame' moment.
About 1:20Says the movie's stunts were impressive then but look modest next to modern Cruise-era action.
About 56 minAcknowledges Mission Impossible was the superior product but still agrees The Saint should have spun off its own series.
About 16 minPrefers the eventual romantic ending over the darker original cut, while admitting the reshoot changes were significant.
About 48 minThe hosts frame Kilmer as someone who looked like a star but was best deployed in odd, supporting, or masked roles.
Opening minutesThe Saint is placed in a wave of TV-to-film revivals that suggests Hollywood was running out of ideas.
About 16 minThe movie’s fun comes from Kilmer constantly reinventing himself in costume and voice.
About 8 minThe film is remembered as a snapshot of club music, electronics, and soundtrack-driven cool.
About 32 minThe scientific premise is treated as nonsense that only exists to drive the espionage plot.
About 32 minThe film is based on a property that originated with Leslie Charteris's novels and later the Roger Moore TV series.
About 16 minThe movie reportedly had a darker original ending where Emma is stabbed with an evil cane during a lecture.
About 1:28Reshoots reportedly cost about $2 million and were done in late 1996/early 1997.
About 1:28Val Kilmer was allegedly the youngest student admitted to Juilliard.
About 8 minThe movie uses Orbital for the theme and includes Sneaker Pimps and Duran Duran on the soundtrack.
About 32 minPhilip Noyce was the director and the film was produced by Robert Evans.
Opening minutesThe Russian president's public cold fusion demo is the film's final plot resolution.
About 32 minRoger Moore is said to be the voice of the rating announcer at the end.
About 1:28Repeatedly invoked as the movie that market-corrected The Saint and used disguises/masks more effectively.
About 8 minUsed to describe Kilmer's star aura and as a source of the Iceman/Kazansky comparison.
Opening minutesDiscussed as a difficult Kilmer project and a precursor to The Saint's place in his career.
About 8 minUsed as an example of Kilmer at his best in a larger ensemble film.
Opening minutesReferenced as a top Kilmer performance and a source of Doc Holliday comparisons.
Opening minutesMentioned as a showcase for Kilmer disappearing into a role and singing as Jim Morrison.
Opening minutesCited as a good movie with Kilmer even though the movie itself is not especially great.
Opening minutesHeld up as a chaotic, 'bat shit' Kilmer-era production.
About 8 minMentioned in the Oscar-nominee discussion as part of Tommy Lee Jones's win.
About 24 minMentioned as one of the all-time soundtrack examples from the era.
About 32 minNamed as another great soundtrack-driven 1990s film.
About 32 minUsed as an example of 90s movies getting internet culture wrong.
About 1:04Another example of movies mishandling the internet in the 1990s.
About 1:04Mentioned in the broader 'crazy job' casting discussion involving Nicole Kidman.
About 48 minUsed as an example of a film with a memorable hidden-blade boot prop.
About 1:36Bill keeps recasting The Saint as another round of Maverick beating Iceman in different careers and movies.
About 16 minKyle repeatedly lists and ranks different Simon Templar disguises as a game.
About 8 minBill riffs on the idea that being a problematic star used to add mystique and value.
About 8 minBill jokes that Schrager had a no-eye-contact rule and has now moved to ESPN.
About 1:28Bill does an over-the-top Gus Johnson call for the hypothermia scene.
About 1:20“We lost the coolest character actor of all time.”Opening minutes
“The action is the juice.”About 8 min
“It's a great hang.”About 8 min
“Fuck you, Gene. Nobody asked you.”About 40 min
“I think Elizabeth Shue is the greatest movie kisser of all time.”About 1:12
MAKE IT A MOVIE NIGHT
WHAT TO WATCH NEXT
Three movies to watch before The Saint, and three to watch next.
ON THE MIC
Bill Simmons125 tracked appearances · 56 H / 64 C / 5 ties
Kyle Brandt20 tracked appearances · 7 H / 13 CCATEGORY CONTEXT
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