The Founder (1 Viewer)

[Robert Crawford]

I was going to view Patriots Day today, but decided to take a road trip and view The Founder instead. I always found the storyline fascinating on how Ray Kroc bought out the McDonald brothers and started the McDonalds empire.

 

[Robert Crawford]

Wow, great film! No surprises really as I kind of knew the whole story beforehand.

 

[TravisR]

I'll probably catch it on Sunday. Glad to hear it's good.

 

[Mark Booth]

We saw 'The Founder' today. Excellent performance by Michael Keaton. We both enjoyed the film very much. The Booth Bijou gives it 4 out of 5 stars.

That said, Ray Kroc was a cheat, thief, and conman. Thankfully, his second wife, Joan, had a better soul. She gave a good portion of their wealth away after he died.

Mark

 

[Bob Cashill]

Loved it, too--maybe we'll get a Joan-oriented sequel.

 

[Johnny Angell]

We saw 'The Founder' today. Excellent performance by Michael Keaton. We both enjoyed the film very much. The Booth Bijou gives it 4 out of 5 stars.

That said, Ray Kroc was a cheat, thief, and conman. Thankfully, his second wife, Joan, had a better soul. She gave a good portion of their wealth away after he died.

Mark

The San Diego Padres were packing their bags to leave town when Ray bought them to keep in San Diego. Kinda weird, and out-of-towner buying them to keep the team in San Diego. If he hadn't done that, the town would have no major league team.

 

[Robert Crawford]

We saw 'The Founder' today. Excellent performance by Michael Keaton. We both enjoyed the film very much. The Booth Bijou gives it 4 out of 5 stars.

That said, Ray Kroc was a cheat, thief, and conman. Thankfully, his second wife, Joan, had a better soul. She gave a good portion of their wealth away after he died.

Mark

Kroc was married three times, they never showed his second wife in the film with Joan being the third and last one.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

I'm looking forward to seeing this film - I was interested when it was first announced (seems like forever ago) and thought I must've missed it already. It was a pleasant surprise to see a commercial for it while channel surfing earlier.

 

[Mark Booth]

Kroc was married three times, they never showed his second wife in the film with Joan being the third and last one.

Thanks. I did not know there was a second wife in the middle. The film is quite misleading in that regard. Kroc is shown feeling flirtatious toward Joan while he's still married to his first wife.

The San Diego Padres were packing their bags to leave town when Ray bought them to keep in San Diego. Kinda weird, and out-of-towner buying them to keep the team in San Diego. If he hadn't done that, the town would have no major league team.

Ray Kroc didn't really keep the Padres in San Diego as much as City Hall and a Superior Court Judge did. When owner C. Arnold Smith was broke and trying to sell the Padres to Joseph Danzansky in 1973 (he planned to move the team to D.C.), the City sued over the remainder of the Padres' lease agreement and the judge ruled that the team would have to pay the remaining 15-year lease on Jack Murphy Stadium before the team could be moved. Smith couldn't afford it and Danzansky backed out. Ray Kroc certainly "saved" the team for San Diego by buying it, but at that point, the team wasn't likely to be moving anywhere.

The Krocs were generally well-liked here in San Diego. Their philanthrobic contributions started before Ray passed away. But it was definitely Joan that gave the majority of the money away after Ray passed.

Mark

 

[Robert Crawford]

Thanks. I did not know there was a second wife in the middle. The film is quite misleading in that regard. Kroc is shown feeling flirtatious toward Joan while he's still married to his first wife.

Mark

I wouldn't call it misleading as Kroc was infatuated with Joan during that time. However, he divorced then remarried and divorced again when Joan divorced her husband. Let's just say the timing was off before they could marry each other.

Another thing about the Padres, perhaps the previous owner couldn't afford to pay the lease, but Kroc had the means if he really wanted to move the team.

 

[Hanson]

What a terrific film, the best of the "based on a true story" movies of 2016. Both a great character study and a breezy dive into the real history of McDonald's and the rise of Ray Kroc. Should have been a slam dunk Best Actor nom for Keaton and could have easily gotten a Best Picture nom, but the director chalked up the snubs to a lack of studio backing during awards season. Definitely a top ten film for me.

 

[TravisR]

I thought I had already posted about this movie but I saw it a few weeks ago and it is excellent. Keaton, Nick Offerman and John Caroll Lynch are all great. Even the actors in smaller roles (Linda Cardellini, Laura Dern and Patrick Wilson) are all memorable too.

 

[Hanson]

I agree, Offerman and John Caroll Lynch were great. Offerman was in full Ron Swanson mode - "I'll have you know I'm a card carrying Republican!"

I absolutely did not recognize Cardellini. It blew my mind when I was scrolling through IMDB the next day.

 

[Robert Crawford]

Today I was talking to my sister and I recommended this film to her. We got into a conversation about how we first ate a McDonalds in 1961, when it opened in our hometown.

 

[Johnny Angell]

Today I was talking to my sister and I recommended this film to her. We got into a conversation about how we first ate a McDonalds in 1961, when it opened in our hometown.

Ah, the good ol' days, before you knew how bad the food was for you.

 

[Robert Crawford]

Ah, the good ol' days, before you knew how bad the food was for you.

The days when McDonald milkshakes would give you a headache because they were so thick as you drank them from your straw. Also, I could never forget the smell of french fries in the air around McDonald's back in the day.

 

[Mark Booth]

The days when McDonald milkshakes would give you a headache because they were so thick as you drank them from your straw.

That's still true for In-N-Out shakes! Ditto for Jack in the Box these days too.

Mark

 

[Johnny Angell]

That's still true for In-N-Out shakes! Ditto for Jack in the Box these days too.

Mark

Growing up, I loved the greasy tacos at Jack's.

 

[Mark Booth]

Growing up, I loved the greasy tacos at Jack's.

Jack in the Box was my first real job. I started there the very day I turned 16. Back then, employees got all the food we wanted for free (on our breaks and during lunch). I would take the spiced meat out of several tacos, form it into a patty, and make a burger with it. Delicious!

Mark

 

[EricSchulz]

Watched this on Netflix last night and LOVED it! I have driven near the "first" McDonald's in Des Plaines (I think) but never checked checked it out. Definitely will now. I agree about Linda Cardinelli...didn't recognize her at all!