Mike & Nick & Nick & Alice (2026)

My guest Jason and I chat a bit about the recent Hulu sci-fi action comedy, Mike & Nick & Nick & Alice. 

Podcast may contain minimal profanity.

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Transcript

Sean 0:11

Hello, and welcome to Scenes from the Screen, the film-focused show for all ages where we cover movies that flicker to life on screens both big and small. You'll find everything from comedy to horror, cult classics to major studio franchises, big budget to independent, theater releases, streaming premieres, and everything in between. Stick around and you might discover a new gem or be reintroduced to an old forgotten favorite. My name is Sean, and I'll be your host.

Sean 0:38

All right. Well, today we're here with Jason. Jason, go ahead and tell us a little bit about yourself or your love of movies, whatever you want to fill everyone in on.

Jason 0:45

So I do love movies. Conveniently, I'm wearing a shirt that I speak fluent movie quotes.

Sean 0:50

I have the same, well, yeah, it's not the same shirt, but you know, not like we trade off or anything.

Jason 0:54

In fact, I was waiting for you to make a comment when I walked in.

Sean 0:56

Yeah, I know. I went, I forgot about it, but yeah, yeah.

Jason 0:58

Yeah, I'm a movie junkie. And like Sean, we talk to each other almost in a separate language of oh, that reminds me. And you just will fire off a quote, and of course, the other person's automatically gonna know it.

Sean 1:08

Yeah. Well, I mean, you hope so. Most people don't. Most people kind of stare at you like...

Jason 1:12

An d if the person doesn't, what are you...

Sean 1:13

Yeah.

Jason 1:13

...look at you like you're you're you have three heads.

Sean 1:16

Well, right, right. But like the first time I think you know we got started talking was a line from A Fish Called Wanda. So that's you know, and that's a line I use that nobody has ever gotten. So that was really impressive. But today we're gonna do a more modern film. So we're gonna do something from this year. It is Mike & Nick & Nick & Alice. And Jason, I'm gonna read something to you because you tell me if this kind of sums up the movie overall for you. This is the IMDB description of the film: "Two friends navigate the dangerous world of organized crime, testing their loyalty and survival skills as they get deeper into the criminal underworld. Is that really an accurate description? Because...

Jason 1:51

...for like half the movie.

Sean 1:52

Right.

Jason 1:52

There's another part of the movie they are completely glossing over.

Sean 1:56

Exactly. And it's really the selling point of the film, which is time travel. I mean, it's not gonna be it's a it's not really a spoiler alert. That happens early on in the film, right? That's what the whole film is based on. So I don't understand why they I mean I when I when I saw that I actually kind of laughed. I'm like, well, I've got to run this by you because I thought it was very weird. But...

Jason 2:13

Not to mention the title when I heard that sounds like some weird love triangle, like it's gonna be some boring dramedy. I'm like, I don't know if I wanna watch this. It sounds like a modern take on this dude loves this girl and this dude also loves this other dude.

Sean 2:28

Right.

Jason 2:28

There's a truth going on here. I don't want to watch that.

Sean 2:30

Yeah, there was a 70s movie, I think I think it was 70s, Bob and Carol, Ted and Alice, which is that kind of thing. That's like swapping. I mean, I've never seen it, but that's one probably on the list. But yeah, I mean, but I I only knew about it because I saw Vince Vaughn on um Good Morning America, and they're like, Oh, he has a new movie coming. I'm like, Okay, cool, that's that's awesome. And I probably forgot about it. I mean, I I saw some highlights, didn't really know too much what it was about. They said, Yeah, I mean, he comes back as himself, and I'm like, okay, cool. Until my wife mentioned it, and then she said that uh, oh, there's a movie on Hulu with Vince Vaughn. I'm like, Yeah, oh yeah, I forgot, yeah, let's watch it. So, yeah, it's uh Mike and Nick and Nick and Alice, and it is from this year, it's strictly streaming on Hulu. So if you have Hulu, you'll see it on there. So one of the first things that really impressed me about the first person you see is I love Ben Schwartz...

Jason 3:14

Yes.

Sean 3:14

...in Parks and Rec, and almost anything he does, he's he's fantastic. Another person I saw on there, I really like Keith David.

Jason 3:20

Oh, yes.

Sean 3:21

You put Keith David in the movie, you're selling me already. Man, Keith David can do no wrong in any film. I mean, and The Thing and There's Something About Mary, just anything. They Live. He's just been fantastic.

Jason 3:30

Men at Work, an underrated movie.

Sean 3:32

What's that?

Jason 3:33

Men at Work.

Sean 3:34

Which I've never seen. I know. I again we were hitting on something that I've again, I I don't know why. It was something missed back in in those days, but yeah, that's one I know you mentioned several times, but uh yeah, I'll have to I'll definitely add that to my list of what thousands I haven't seen? So, you know, it it I'm a sucker for a time travel movie. So you give me a time travel movie, and man, I I'm a happy guy. This one is okay. I don't know how you felt about it.

Jason 4:02

I time travel, pardon the pun, but there's almost limitless limitless possibilities there...

Sean 4:08

Right.

Jason 4:09

...o f what you can do with it. So on the surface, it's it's fun, it's entertaining. But if you spend any amount of time thinking about is this possible? Is this possible?

Sean 4:19

Logistics.

Jason 4:20

Y eah, you quickly go down a hole, and then it's gonna ruin every movie you've ever heard of or seen involving time travel, because at least to me, I don't really think it's possible. And some of the the liberties they take with things that happen, and I don't want to get too far into this movie yet about that. I'm like, come on. So I try not to get wrapped around.

Sean 4:38

Right. Right. Yeah, and it's uh you know, like I said, it was you know, I mean, basically it's a simple plot. He you know, he steps into a time travel machine that uh Ben Schwartz's character has created. She was a friend, he was, I'm sorry, he is a friend of Alice's, and Alice is actually played by Elsa Gonzalez, I believe.

Jason 4:59

Eiza.

Jason 4:59

Eiza? It might be Eiza Gonzalez. I can't read my eyes are bad. I think it is Eiza Gonzalez. I apologize, Eiza, if you happen to be listening to this. She's great in it. I mean, here's one thing that really I almost didn't like. Uh I'm not a big James Marsden fan. I like him when he does comedy.

Sean 5:17

An d that's a selling point for me because he was fantastic in this. Yes, I mean, he was. I I was I really enjoyed it. Like I said, I've seen him in Westworld and you know, X-Men. Yeah, he was all right, as Cyclops but you know, this movie, I really think he's his gift is comedy, which I don't think they give him enough. It's almost like Alec Baldwin, way back when, because you're a good looking guy, they don't think you know, oh, he can't, he's got just got to do straightforward dramas or action film. Man, and Alec Baldwin's fantastic in comedies, and James Marsden, I think, is too. So give him other chances, Hollywood.

Jason 5:46

I think the movie Death at a Funeral, I think, was the movie he was in. It was uh a funeral African-American family, and he was dating one of the daughters, and he got on drugs or something. He was hilarious in that movie. He was like naked up on a roof. At this point...

Sean 6:05

I think I've seen short pieces of that too, but I never wanted to stick around because I had I didn't want to see from the I mean I had to say from the beginning, so...

Jason 6:10

Hilarious.

Sean 6:11

Yeah, and this that's a I believe a remake. Is that Peter Dinklage? Yes, too. Okay, yeah, yeah. But so, and I love Vince Vaughn too, but I have to admit, in this movie, he looked he looked tired.

Jason 6:22

Yes.

Sean 6:22

Lik e he looked, and it wasn't his character's thing. I mean, maybe like the future him.

Jason 6:26

Right.

Sean 6:26

But even when he comes back to like the current day, you know, I mean, the whole premise is he so he steps in a time machine in the future, he comes back to basically kind of save himself from doing something, which would result in James Marsden's death. So, again, not really spoiler alert because that's again the beginning of the film.

Jason 6:45

Right.

Sean 6:45

So the whole thing is him kind of kidnapping himself from the past to you know to save it, you know, whatever. No, actually, the present because he's from the future. So he comes back, that's his past.

Jason 6:55

Yeah, the way the movie started out, and then Marsden going to the door, having been sent by Vince Vaughn, goes to the door, and Vince Vaughn greets him the door. I was like, Oh, this just took a turn.

Sean 7:06

Right. Yeah, and it was it was hilarious. And then one there's one line that James Marsden did and I had to rewind it. I was laughing so hard. Where you know he's talking to the future Vince Vaughn character and Nick. Nick, yeah, but he's talking to Nick, and he said that he's like, Well, I don't remember you telling me this. He's like, Yeah, you told me, and he just goes into that, he does his words exactly. And the way he delivered those was hysterical. I'm like, God, this guy's great, he's great at that. I mean, maybe I misjudged you know again, James Marsden. But yeah, Vaughn just looked like he was going through the motions in this, which is...

Jason 7:38

Yeah, I I agree with you. I don't know. I mean, because it was such a meaty role for him. He's basically playing himself with two different variations of it, so he could have had fun with the other one, like the future self.

Sean 7:50

Right?

Jason 7:51

Maybe even toying with the the former self.

Sean 7:54

Yeah.

Jason 7:54

And yeah, I just didn't see a whole lot of range there.

Sean 7:58

No, no, and I was I was I was really disappointed in that because I guess I love Vince Vaughn and everything, so maybe that's just that movie. You know, maybe the director didn't coax it out of him. The movie kind of reminded me in a way, and without the time travel, of a watered down Lucky Number Slevin for some reason, which I love. I haven't seen that in since it came out, but right, it's never anywhere, yes. But yeah, Lucky Number Sleven is fantastic, and it's you know basically about the navigating of the whole crime world thing, which that that appeal applies to that movie wholly. But yeah, like I said, it was the thing I like about it. I know you and I have discussed about this, which is why I don't really see movies at the theater too much anymore, is because they're too long.

Jason 8:33

Yep.

Sean 8:34

But this was under two hours.

Jason 8:35

Yes.

Sean 8:35

This is doable. Now, would I go to the theater to see this? No.

Jason 8:38

Right.

Sean 8:39

Because it's not... back in the day, I probably would have...but now it's you know, it's...

Jason 8:45

Certainly not if the trailers that they put out ahead of time were like that synopsis for IMDB.

Sean 8:50

Right.

Jason 8:50

No, that's not interesting.

Sean 8:51

You know, the average film that comes out, which I mean it basically is anyway, but it's still, you know. I mean, like I said, you have some great performances. You know, I mean, Keith David is the is like the mob boss. Again, Marsden, Eiza Gonzalez. Jimmy Tatro's great as Jimmy Boy.

Jason 9:05

He was awesome.

Sean 9:06

His and he's got that distinct voice, you know, that he was I think he was in Modern Family for a couple episodes.

Jason 9:12

Oh, yes, he was. Yeah.

Sean 9:12

Yeah, he was one of the uh Haley's boyfriends, but yeah, yeah. I mean, the cast is great. Steven Root isn't, you know, I mean, Dolph Lungren, there's just tons of people in this movie. And again, it's not like it that's not like it totally fails, but yeah, there's nothing that special about it, you know?

Jason 9:29

And then I started getting because I I wasn't engaged at all times, I started like when he was testing the theory and he stabbed himself.

Sean 9:40

Right.

Jason 9:40

And then the future self suddenly has a scar, instantly scar, I'm like, there's no way that happens. No, no, no, no, no, stop it.

Sean 9:47

Yeah, I mean that's one theory of time travel. You know, I mean you gotta you do the Back to the Future, you do this, you do that. So there's a lot of different theories about it, and it's it's always interesting to see what what they come up with, but yeah, there's so I don't know. Here's a couple things that bother me about the movie, too. There's one is, and I thought it was maybe something. Well, first I thought, okay, he's just using this to effect was a slow motion effect.

Jason 10:08

Oh,

Sean 10:08

And then it happened again, and then it happened again, and then it happened like six or seven times. I'm like, is this something wrong with the TV? Because why is he he there was even one of a cat wagging its tail that was slow motion. Why? Is it padding that you didn't have enough? Maybe that's it, but I don't know if that bothered you as much as it did me. I was, I mean, it really irritated me.

Jason 10:29

I can't say it stuck out, but now that you're bringing it up, yeah. I I didn't question like what's the scheme of things with this? Why are why are we drawing so much attention? We're slowing it down, like pay attention to this. Like you said, cat wagging the tail, I'm like...

Sean 10:41

But there's no pay off for it. Yeah, I mean, if there was a payoff, that's a different story. Oh, yeah, great. But another one, man, this film really took a big leap that you have vast knowledge of the Gilmore girls in one particular scene.

Jason 10:54

Right.

Sean 10:54

I've never seen the show, I'm familiar with it, but I mean it's a passing familiarity. But I mean, it really hinges on like this whole you know, story of you know, like, I don't know enough about the Gilmore. ..why do I care?

Jason 11:05

It was almost like an inside joke to the cast or the director, somebody that every main character had this intimate knowledge that was their favorite show. They all knew the characters, the backstories, and everything. I'm like, what is happening here?

Sean 11:16

Yeah, I mean, it was just an odd choice to make, you know. I don't know if I would have gone that way, you know, but you know, apparently then I thought, well, maybe somebody has a connection, maybe the director no, it's like it just seems oddly out of place.

Jason 11:29

Or or maybe that there's a following of that show that's far bigger than I ever possibly imagined, and I'm just not in on it.

Sean 11:36

I mean, I think there is a decent following of it, but I just again I don't it wasn't my type, it wasn't something I'd watch, you know. Again, I'm very selective with what I watch TV wise too, because that really takes a chunk of your time. But yeah, again, we're just wasn't it. It's not I don't know if it's a good or bad show. I just I just didn't care. And one of the my last thing, which is the unnecessary sequel alert at the very end. Do I really want to because the there is there's a possibility, and do I really want to see a sequel this? I do not.

Jason 12:06

That left a really bad taste in my mouth...

Sean 12:08

Yeah.

Jason 12:09

...the way that ended. I'm like, this was a pretty good movie, and then you screwed it up in the last two minutes with this bullshit.

Sean 12:15

Yep, yeah, because you have kind of like a kind of in a way a heartfelt ending.

Jason 12:19

Right.

Sean 12:19

And a well-deserved ending, and now you may cheat on it. And and again, it's like you know, it's almost like well, it's out of the blue.

Jason 12:27

Right.

Sean 12:28

Because there was, you know, hey, there's one time machine. Well, maybe there's something else that can, yeah. Oh yeah, come on. I think they're vastly overrating again, overreaching on the fact that we want another, see another. I mean, what would it be called? Would it be called Mike and Mike and Nick and Nick and Alice? I mean, I don't know, you know, because you already have a long title as it is, which is people aren't gonna remember that.

Jason 12:47

Yeah.

Sean 12:47

You know, what do you call it for short? You know, you can't call it Mike for short. Well, I mean, I've just seen Mike. Who's Mike? Yeah, that's leading a conversation down other roads that I, you know, really don't think. But I don't know, is there anything else you thought about that you want to touch on?

Jason 13:01

Well, the the the way that ended with bunk, the only movie that actually had a worse ending, in my opinion. Like, come on, was Lake Placid. Great movie, very underrated movie. And then at the very end, they finally killed a huge rogue alligator, and then suddenly out of the water comes a second one. Immediately they blow it up, and boom, you spend an entire movie worrying about this one alligator, and then a second one, and you killed it in 10 seconds.

Sean 13:27

But did they have the means? Did they not have the means before? Is that you know I mean...

Jason 13:30

Like I was like, but still you're just cheap en this movie so badly. So that's what this kind of felt like. It was just hook at the end of a sequel...

Sean 13:39

Right.

Jason 13:40

...with no explanation for like, oh, there's a second machine. Why is there a second one? And why did she know about it? Like, right, oh yeah, I should have told you, like, right, yeah.

Sean 13:51

Well, yeah, if you would have told us at the beginning, it wouldn't be this movie, you know what I mean? Like, so yeah, that's that's laziness on the part of writing, and I that's what I can't stand. Like, you know, one of my friends that I started seeing movies with when I was in Cleveland, he said, I never thought as much about writing and plot and everything until I met you because you started pointing stuff out, not in a bad way, you know. Sometimes it's like, oh, this is cool because this happened, or this, you know, this led to this. But if it makes no sense, what's the point in keeping it in? You know, it's just yeah, oh, we'll just have an action movie. Okay, well, you know, you want it to be successful.

Jason 14:23

Right.

Sean 14:23

You know, and if you are gonna push the sci-fi aspect of it, which again, this is highly based on science fiction in a way, because it all hinges on that. You know, you're it's actually throwing it in. Yeah, it reminds me almost of, and this was done successfully, Happy Death Day, and Happy Death Day 2U.

Jason 14:39

Yep. Where it was the time travel aspect was done very well, and you know, it was it was entertaining and it seemed realistic, whereas this one just is a gimmick, you know. And yeah, it's a gimmick to the first one, but it it meant something, so it had repercussions. This one, yeah, we'll just fix it, maybe again in a sequel, you know. I yeah, I like I said, it's a you can watch it if there's nothing else to do, but... Yeah. I I mean for me, I love Marsden doing comedy. I thought he was the gem of the movie.

Sean 15:06

Right. Absolutely.

Jason 15:06

Uh not to say Vince Vaughn mailed it in because he still does his patented rapid fire dialogue.

Sean 15:14

Right.

Jason 15:14

And he's good. And plus he and Ben Affleck are are the two people of follicle journey you want to watch in Hollywood. Like, what's his hair looking like in this movie now?

Sean 15:21

Right, right.

Jason 15:22

And Gonzalez...

Sean 15:24

Follicle journey.

Jason 15:26

I would watch her read an instruction manual in prison. I she's just stunning.

Sean 15:30

She's great, yeah.

Jason 15:31

And I I haven't seen her be bad in any movie yet. So the three of them together, uh, there was chemistry there. I enjoyed them, and as you mentioned, Keith David, Stephen Root, like great ancillary characters as well.

Sean 15:41

I mean, yeah, just a great cast. Like they assembled it, the pieces were there, it's just uh sum just didn't really work in overall. Yeah, like I said, it's you know, I've seen worse misfires. That at least this had a lot of positives going for it. Like rewatchability, is it something you would rewatch if it came on TV? Just if it just came on.

Jason 15:58

Yeah. Uh I might, but I probably would feel that the the pull during a slow scene. Like, is there anything else on?

Sean 16:06

Yeah.

Jason 16:07

One of those things.

Sean 16:07

Right, yeah. Like there are movies that you just suck you in.

Jason 16:10

Yes.

Sean 16:10

Like you know, we we just saw on TV, Sneakers was on. That will suck me in.

Jason 16:14

Yep.

Sean 16:14

Yeah, but this, yeah, this gets really low rewatchability, but like I wouldn't go seek it out again.

Jason 16:18

Right, yeah.

Sean 16:19

And again, it will probably come on at some point. I don't care. I would I would skip over it, you know.

Jason 16:24

There are far worse ways to spend two hours.

Sean 16:27

There are, yeah, yeah. So...

Jason 16:28

Which is not a glowing recommendation, but yeah, right. Yeah, so I would say, gun to my head, I would recommend watching it because I I think it's it's worth seeing at least once.

Sean 16:39

Right, yeah. As long as you have if you have Hulu, watch it. You know, like I said, it's a it's a good if you don't care really about paying attention too much, yeah. Because you don't really have to, you don't have to think too much about this movie, it's kind of a shoot 'em up, and you know, it's got they try to jam everything into it. And like I said, it works on some level...

Jason 16:55

Yeah.

Sean 16:55

...but it's not yeah, I've seen better films...

Jason 16:58

Right. Agreed.

Sean 16:58

So but I've seen a lot worse too.

Jason 17:01

Oh yeah.

Sean 17:01

So all right. Well, is there anything else you want to talk about about this movie anyway?

Speaker 17:06

Yeah, no, I I I certainly appreciate the opportunity to be here, Sean.

Speaker 1 17:10

Well, I want you back because we talk about movies all the time.

Jason 17:13

I'd be happy to come back.

Sean 17:13

And at some point, we're gonna do maybe some special things, like you know, there will be bonus material, you know, maybe start like a little we were talking about drunken movies.

Jason 17:22

Oh yeah.

Sean 17:23

So you know, where we start imbibing while we start watching a movie, and you know, just you know, the movie won't be moving playing, we'll be watching, but we'll just be commenting on it as we do it. So those will be obviously a little bit longer. We're not gonna pick you know a three-hour movie. Yeah, we are gonna pick you know some things that are smaller. So all right. Well, thank you again, everyone, for your time. Thank you, Jason, for being here.

Jason 17:42

My pleasure.

Sean 17:43

And we'll have you on again soon.

Jason 17:45

Thank you.

Sean 17:46

That's all I have for today. So, as always, thank you for listening. If you liked it, make sure you hit that subscribe button so you're the first to know when new episodes become available on your favorite podcast platform. For Scenes From the Screen, I'm Sean. And until next time, don't let your screen go dark.