The Nerdery Movie Night #260: Drop and Garlic Bread Popcorn

Is this the first time Dave gave the popcorn and film the same rating and Joe also gave the popcorn and film the same rating (albeit 1/2 star higher)? Maybe.

Garlic Bread Popcorn

Dave: I once heard Marlo Thomas discussing a reboot of That Girl, saying that cell phones would have made most of their plot lines unworkable. I wish that had been the case for this film. A new twist on the “technology will kill us” trope, Drop is predictable but still delivers on a few jump scares, while picking at a deep-seated fear plaguing those that those stupid enough to have AirDrop open to every random yahoo within a 50-foot radius. Really, who lets absolute randos send them anything just because they’re at the same interstate rest area? Apparently the protagonist of Drop does, that’s who. The ultimate twist in the film was a satisfying mix of predictable and terrifying, but, really, if Violet had just resisted the urge to get unsolicited GIFs from tech bros in line with her at Burger King, none of this would have happened. More than a scary movie about stalkers, this feels like a movie about digital privacy and information literacy. Read the damn terms of service! (️️️⭐️⭐️⭐️)

I made a vain attempt to recreate garlic bread (the from-frozen, nostalgic kind) in a popcorn recipe. While tasty, the popcorn couldn’t hold a candle to the oil-bathed, garlic-studded, artery-clogging goodness that is honest-to-goodness Texas Toast. Even a bunch of herbs, a lot of granulated garlic, and several tablespoons of butter couldn’t save this popcorn from the mediocrity heap. Did we eat it quickly? Yes. Would I make it for company? No. Would I rather just eat a hunk of garlic bread? Definitely (⭐️⭐️⭐️️️️)

Joe: I came across Drop a couple months ago while randomly flipping through new releases on IMDb. I was drawn to the film's promotional poster, which shows the teary eyes of a woman, glimpsing away in terror, her phone in the foreground. Color blocked in red and black, it is striking and unnerving. The premise of the film is flimsy at best, but the script manages to wring an insane amount of tension from every compounded twist, and the claustrophobic setting certainly helps keep things tight. The final act is absolutely bonkers, with a denouement that threatens to neuter the wild ride that preceded it, but over all, Drop is better than it has any right to be, even if it requires a heavy suspension of disbelief. [Spoiler alert: nothing, and I do mean nothing, is satisfactorily explained in the end.] (⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2)

The older I get, the less capable my body is of processing garlic. I swear to god, it sinks into my skin and probably emanates from my body for days. It also dries out my mouth, so I will likely wake up every hour on the hour tonight to drink my weight in water. This popcorn was very garlicky (poor Dave must now must sleep next to me as my body rids itself of the pungent odor), and the chunks of literal garlic bread only enhanced the overwhelming flavor profile. Still, I enjoyed it, even if the end result is that people will not enjoy being in my presence for the next few days. (⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2)

Popcorn: Dave 💅🏻

Drop on IMDb