RW311 - Bonus - The Ref

In this special Christmas episode of The Rewatch Podcast, Cory and Nathan deal with some Hostile Hostages as they discuss "The Ref."

Trailer:

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Richard LaGravenese co-wrote the film with his sister-in-law Marie Weiss. It was inspired by their families. For example, the dinner scene: "Both Marie and I are Italian Catholics who married into Jewish families, so we do have those big holiday dinners," LaGravenese said. Weiss began writing the script in 1989 after she and her husband moved from New York to California. Inspiration came from an argument she had with him and she thought, "Wouldn't it be great if there were a third party to step in and referee?" She wrote several drafts and consulted with LaGravenese in 1991 and they took it to Disney. The studio approved the project within 20 minutes. LaGravenese spent a year revising the script until he finally got "tired of doing rewrites for executives."

After Ted Demme directed comedian Denis Leary in No Cure for Cancer, a stand-up comedy special for Showtime, they got the script for The Ref and decided to do it. The studio cast Leary based on the sarcastic funny man persona he cultivated in MTV spots that Demme directed. Their involvement motivated LaGravenese to come back to the project. Executive producer Don Simpson described the overall tone of The Ref as "biting and sarcastic. Just my nature."

When this was released originally in the UK it was called Hostile Hostages.

Film debut of J.K. Simmons.

The marriage counselor the couple sees is named, "Dr. Wong." This character is played by actor BD Wong.

Denis Leary's line "Lady, your husband ain't dead. He's hiding!" is a direct quote of a line from the classic Abbott and Costello routine “Susquehanna Hat Company".

Early in the film, Lloyd asks Gus what his name is, and Gus answers: "Fuck you, that's my name." This line was more famously said in Glengarry Glen Ross two years earlier, which also starred Kevin Spacey.

The family's name, Chasseur, is French for 'hunter'.

John Scurti plays (Lt. Steve Milford) went on to play Lt. Kenneth "Lou" Shea in Rescue Me along side Dennis Leary (Gus).

The Officer in charge is referred to by everyone as "Lt Huff" But his name tag reads "Chief Huff"

At the end of the film when Lloyd (Spacey) and Caroline (Davis) are talking to the police in their foyer, there are several close-ups of Lloyd's wrist watch, which appears to contain the Travelers Insurance umbrella logo. The film takes place in Connecticut and Hartford, CT is the corporate headquarters of Travelers.

After test audiences responded poorly to the film's original ending—Gus turns himself in to show Jesse that a life of crime leads nowhere quickly—a new ending was shot in January 1994.

Appeared on Entertainment Weekly's list of The 50 Best Movies You've Never Seen in the July 16, 2012 issue.

What's Up Next?

Next up, Cory & Nathan ring in the new year with "Ghostkeeper."

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