Exclusive Rotten Tomatoes Show Interview

Last week, I was lucky enough to chat with Brett Erlich and Ellen Fox of The Rotten Tomatoes Show.  If you haven’t seen it already, you’re missing out because their movie reviews are not only hilarious, they are inventive (make sure you check out the haiku reviews!).

It all started on March 6, 2009 with reviews of Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun Li, Echelon Conspiracy and Crossing Over (watch the premiere episode) and has since grown into an internet sensation.

During the interview, I started with a very obvious question – do they enjoy working on the show?  They both said yes and Ellen added that its “the best job in Hollywood” because she “gets to see movies, write comedy and wear cute outfits.”  I agree, that sounds pretty darn awesome.

They also said that they’ve gotten a great response from viewers and Brett said that they “appreciate people sending stuff in because it takes pressure off us” (people can send in their own video reviews – more on that later!).  I commented on the haiku reviews and Ellen said that they were a lot of fun and specifically brought up the one about Wolverine (watch it here).  She also mentioned being impressed by the skills of the people who submitted their own.

If you’ve ever watched The Rotten Tomatoes Show, you’ll know that Ellen and Brett can be pretty opinionated and brutally honest.  I asked them if that has ever led to any heated debates in real life and I couldn’t help but laugh at the response.  Brett started by saying: “Laura Linney and John Leguizamo.  I don’t care much for them.”  He then added that just because John Leguizamo “is sweating, it doesn’t mean he’s acting.”  I had to agree.

Meanwhile, Ellen revealed that she had liked Hannah Montana: The Movie (watch their review and make sure you watch their commentary at the very end of the video) which caused some discord between the hosts.  Ellen said she had to leave the room and Brett said that they had to find a way to preserve their working relationship.  Of course, they were joking but you can’t help but wonder if they ever want to just turn to someone and say something like “are you crazy?  Did we just see the same movie?”

When they revealed how they create their reviews, I understood the process a little better.  They explained that they usually go see movies together but that they hold in any comments about it until they are safely away from each other.  Brett explained that they want to avoid influencing each other and Ellen agreed adding “I’m wishy-washy.”  That makes their reviews even better, in my opinion, because I know that it’s what they really think rather than just something they came up with over coffee right after they left the theater.

I asked them if they were planning to see any movies this weekend (I actually specifically asked if they were going to see Angels and Demons but they have already seen it, of course!) and Ellen said she was really looking forward to seeing seeing Management starring Jennifer Aniston and Steve Zahn (Brett said that he was going to see it also).  As Ellen pointed out, Aniston can do those big studio films but then turn around and give a great performance in an indie flick (I really loved her in The Good Girl but barely remember her in Rock Star so I can see Ellen’s point).

Of course, I was also curious about what summer movie they were looking forward to seeing and which films they thought might… well… suck.  I was a little surprised by their answers.

Brett immediately mentioned being excited about the new Woody Allen movie Whatever Works and almost as quickly Ellen said that she’s not looking forward to that one because Larry David is involved.  Brett agreed that viewers who do not like David, will probably not like this film.  I didn’t have to ask about the basis of Ellen’s dislike for him since she explained that David’s show Curb Your Enthusiasm is all about “Jewish people screaming at each other” which is something she easily saw for free at home growing up in New Jersey.

Ellen was equally vocal about the summer movies that she thought might not live up to the hype – Transformers, Terminator Salvation and G.I. Joe.  She said that she was glad Megan Fox was returning for the Transformers sequel so that she would have something to look at (adding that Fox is not just for guys – girls like to look at her too!) and explained that G.I. Joe is for people who “want to look at one computer-animated object attack another computer-animated object” (the woman’s got a point).  She predicted that Terminator Salvation was not going to do as well as some people think.

Brett agreed and said that unlike other action films like the new Star Trek, a movie like Terminator Salvation is “a little dark and depressing for people right now.”  I’m inclined to agree and I think it’s one major reason why I just haven’t been able to get excited about it.

Both agreed that The Proposal starring Sandra Bullock and Ryan Reynolds looks good (again, I was surprised!).  Ellen said a major selling point is that Ryan Reynold’s is nude in this flick and she and Brett laughed about the trailer where it is implied that his character has “morning wood” after he jumps in bed with Bullock (Ellen added that it was “adorable”).  It does look super funny and I’m looking forward to it as well!

Brett also said that he hopes Year One is good since it’s being directed by Harold Ramis (Ghostbusters) and added “he’s kind of an idol for me.”

As the interview was coming to an end, I asked them if there was anything happening the near future that they’d like to promote.

Coming up on The Rotten Tomatoes Show (during the week when they review Drag Me To Hell) they will be saluting the “Top Bitches in Movies.”  I can’t wait to see who they pick.  Who would you include in this list?  My first thought was Ellen Ripley from the Aliens movies.

They are also planning to create a video defending robots since (as Brett puts it) “robots often get a bad rep.”  He mentioned the Terminator films and, when you think about it, robots really don’t get much love in Hollywood.  I’m glad someone’s doing something about that.  I guess PETA really only cares about animals.

Brett and Ellen also encourage everyone to upload videos to their site.  You can share your own video reviews (show the word your inner critic!).  If they choose to air your review, you could get $100!  For more details, visit the official website!

In addition to catching them on The Rotten Tomatoes Show, you can add them to Facebook or follow them on Twitter:

• Ellen Fox – http://twitter.com/EllenFox
• Brett Erlich – http://twitter.com/bretterlich

image used with permission