One thing I have learned in my nearly 80 years on this earth is that I know what I like, I know what I don’t like, and most importantly, if you are going to get me to watch a movie, you’d better convince me that it is worth watching. I only do streaming. They mention Adolescence. below. I think I have tried to watch it five times, but I have not gotten past the eleven-minute mark. I did watch Rip, and while I enjoyed it, there were times when I considered stopping, as it lacked sufficient action and no sense of mystery that would have grabbed my attention. What kept me watching was the intro that indicated it was based on true events. In fact, if I had bothered to research or be inspired by true events, I doubt that I would have finished watching the movie. I just looked up the basis for true, and it would have turned me off; it would have set it to unwatched until I was so fucking bored that anything to entertain would work.
The True Story (2016)
- The Bust: In June 2016, Miami-Dade Police Tactical Narcotics Team (TNT) members, led by Officer Chris Casiano, executed a search warrant at a home in Miami Lakes.
- The Cash: They discovered over $24 million in cash (not $20 million as in the film) hidden inside 24 Home Depot orange buckets, which were concealed in a hidden compartment in the attic.
- The Owner: The home belonged to Luis Hernandez-Gonzalez, who ran a gardening supply store used as a front for a marijuana trafficking ring.
- The Process: Protocol required officers to count the cash on-site, which took over 42 hours.
- No Corruption: Unlike the movie, there were no corrupt cops, shoot-outs, or immediate, violent reprisals from a cartel during the real-life raid
Matt Damon says Netflix asks for the plot to be repeated “three or four times” because people are easily distracted watching movies at home.
The Rip actor – who was joined by his collaborator Ben Affleck to promote the new crime‑thriller – reflected on how streaming has reshaped the way filmmakers are expected to construct stories.
Speaking on The Joe Rogan Experience, Damon said: “You’re watching in a room, the lights are on, other s—’s going on, the kids are running around, the dogs are running around, whatever it is. It’s just a very different level of attention that you’re willing, or that you’re able, to give to it.”
He continued: “The standard way to make an action movie that we learned was, you usually have three set pieces — one in the first act, one in the second, one in the third. You spend most of your money on that one in the third act. That’s your finale. And now they’re like, ‘Can we get a big one in the first five minutes? We want people to stay.’”
… However, Affleck doesn’t believe it’s necessary.
Referring to the hit 2025 psychological crime drama Adolescence, he explained: “But then you look at Adolescence, and it didn’t do any of that s—. And it’s f—ing great. And it’s dark too. It’s tragic and intense. [It’s about] this guy who finds out his kid is accused of murder. There are long shots of the back of their heads. They get in the car, nobody says anything.”
