The Parenting (2025)

Episode 440, 2 Guys and a Chainsaw Horror Movie Review Podcast

Todd: Hello and welcome to another episode of Two Guys and a Chainsaw. I’m Todd.

Craig: And I’m Craig.

Todd: We are doing a horror comedy, pretty modern. I think it came out this year on HBO Max, the Parenting with a whole bunch of stars in it. Craig, uh, you recommended this movie. Obviously I hadn’t seen it. 

Craig: I like doing new things and modern things, things that people are maybe talking about and interested in, even though I know that we get way more hits on the more.

Obscure films that we cover. I know, I know that’s true. Yeah. But I still like to do, you know, I, I, I like keeping up with the things that are coming out. I don’t have many people to talk to about these things except for you and like the patrons. So Alan doesn’t want to hear it, does he? No, I couldn’t even get him to watch this one with me.

I think I’ve, I’ve just come to the realization that Alan just doesn’t like watching movies. Like I think he’s become part of the younger generation who just doesn’t have the patience for them. Like, wow, if he can’t absorb the content in like 30 minutes, an hour max, I. He’s out. If I can convince him to watch a movie, we have to watch it in shifts.

Like we can’t sit and watch it from beginning to end. We have to watch like a half an hour at a time or an hour at a time. I was surprised that I couldn’t get him to watch this because it’s a, it is a comedy and I would say first and foremost it’s a comedy. Yeah, it’s definitely a horror movie too, for sure.

But it’s a comedy and it stars multiple people that we are huge fans of and. I’m just gonna get right out of the gate and say, I thought it was fucking hilarious and I am worried about how to talk about it because so much of the comedy comes from the combination of the writing and the delivery. Yeah.

Me trying to tell you why it’s funny is not going to do it justice. You’re just gonna have to take my word for it. And that’s our podcast folks.

I will try. I’ll, you know, both of us will try to, you know. Talk about the movie, but I don’t think I can do it justice. Maybe you can, I shouldn’t speak for you. Well, I 

Todd: mean, I’m just, I’m surprised that Alan didn’t wanna watch this or you couldn’t get him to watch it. ’cause it’s such a shame because, uh, it seems like it might be right up his alley.

’cause like you said, it is first and foremost a comedy. I mean, it feels like, like a sitcom almost. And like you said, all these stars. All of whom I really enjoy. Lisa Kudrow just has a way of delivering everything to make it sound hilarious. 

Craig: Lisa Kudrow is one of those, she’s one of those rare actors, and there’s a lot of them.

And I would argue that Parker Posey is what an oxymoron. I just said one of those rare actors that there’s a lot of, but Parker Posey is, is kind of like this too, in that Lisa Kudrow is always Lisa Kudrow. Yeah. But it’s always funny. Yeah. Like it just always works. I don’t know why. It’s just that she’s so quirky and so funny that she just works.

And so, and, and Parker Posey is much the same. Like Parker Posey will play more with, I’m watching White Lotus right now, which she’s in and she’s hilarious in that too. And she’s got this funny affected Southern accent. It’s hilarious. And she was great in all of those. Uh, I can’t think of the guy’s name, but all of those Guffman movies.

What’s his name? Oh yeah. Uh, Christopher Guest movies. Yeah, all those. Chris, she’s great. She’s hilarious. And she’s in this, and she’s hilarious in this too. And, and you’re right, I’m sorry. I’m talking too much. I’m just excited about this movie. Alan would love this movie. I’m going to make him watch it eventually because he would, yeah.

Because it’s really funny and it’s not that scary. 

Todd: It’s really not scary. I mean, it’s one of those movies that’s too much of a comedy to be scary at all, and it’s not trying to be, I think No, and you’re right. I think part of the reason why it works is I think these jokes were written for these people.

It’s the writer is, uh, Kent Sublet. He’s been a writer for Saturday Night Live for almost 20 years, and this is really the only film I think that he’s written. The director, Craig Johnson has done a bunch of stuff, but nothing. I think of note, I’d be pleading 

Craig: my ignorance here. He did a movie called The Skeleton.

Twins. Okay. With Kristen Wig and Stefan, I can’t think of his real name. Bill Hader. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. And it too had elements of comedy, but it was a dark comedy. But those two actors were absolutely phenomenal in it. And I love that movie. I highly recommend it. It’s not horror at all, but it’s, it’s really, really good.

So when I saw that he had done that. I was looking forward to it. I don’t know that I will necessarily have a lot to say about the direction. Right, because it’s, 

Todd: it’s, it’s really just directed like a, like a TV show or a sitcom or, I mean, it’s, there’s nothing particularly notable about it because it’s not really trying, it’s not a stylish movie.

No. It’s just a, it’s not trying to be, it’s just a, a comedy. Yeah. I think that. Oddly enough, this movie isn’t getting a lot of love. Pretty low rated on, on Rotten Tomatoes, and it seemed like people were just saying, oh, it’s not scary, or, I didn’t think it was that funny, or it was corny or something. I, I don’t know.

I don’t really get it. Maybe there were expectations going into it that weren’t fulfilled. Maybe people really wanted something scarier, gorier, or I guess, I don’t know, like, I don’t know what more you want from a. A comedy, you know what I mean? Like it, I, I think it works. 

Craig: Those types of reviews frustrate me because why are you criticizing something