Chris "Mad Dog" Russo Ripped Birdman for Nine Minutes

Chris “Mad Dog” Russo wasn’t even groggy when he watched Birdman. It was, after all, a better option than watching Knicks-Heat, Pelicans-Magic, or a basketball game between Quinnipiac and Monmouth. However, he only got through 45 minutes of the “garbage,” and went on a vintage nine-minute rant. Eight candidates for best picture is way too many. “Before you know it there will be 20.” He hadn’t gotten around to seeing American Sniper yet, but the Academy doesn’t like the “conservative” Eastwood and always discriminates against films that made too much money.

For the record, not that my opinion matters, but I agree with everything Russo said in this rant, right up to not having seen American Sniper yet but still thinking it probably got jobbed. Unlike Dog, I made it through all of Birdman, which I felt alternated between snoozefest and over the top. I didn’t feel emotionally invested in any of the characters, other than being annoyed by all of them (which may have been the point?), and felt they relied on cartoonish stereotypes of actors, actresses, and writers as a crutch. Again: Just my opinion. If you liked it, we just disagree. It’s a good thing that we all have different tastes.

Anyways, this audio segment is just the latest reminder that Mike and the Mad Dog need to get back together, if only for special occasions. I’d be a lot more entertained by their going back and forth about Birdman for five hours than by any movie.