89: “You Watch Your Mouth, Buddy” – Thelma & Louise

When We Were Young - an 80s and 90s pop culture podcast

When it comes to leading ladies, you’d have a hard time finding a more powerhouse lineup than 1991’s THELMA & LOUISE, which saw both of its stars nominated for Best Actress at the Oscars that year. Geena Davis and Susan Sarandon play BFFs whose road trip goes seriously south when they shoot a rapist and end up as unlikely outlaws bound for Mexico — via the Grand Canyon, of course.

Callie Khouri’s original screenplay was so groundbreaking and audacious, it attracted the attention of nearly every actress in Hollywood — and was passed on by nearly every studio executive at the time, who pushed Khouri to make her characters more “ladylike” and change the controversial (and now totally legendary) ending.

In this episode, our hosts discuss a film that had the odds stacked against it ever getting a greenlight, which has since become one of the most iconic and beloved films of the 90s. We also dust off the two other runners-up from the 1991 Best Actress race, seeing how For The Boys’ Bette Midler and Rambling Rose’s Laura Dern stack up against Sarandon and Davis.

Does Thelma & Louise still feel as fresh as it did 30 years ago? Would the film still ruffle as many patriarchal feathers if it were made today? And what ever became of that handsome newcomer who plays the drifter? Climb in your Thunderbird, lock a cop up in the trunk, and leave your sex hair as is, because we’re in hot pursuit of the ultimate female buddy movie — and we think we have it in our sights!

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