Blank Check with Griffin & David

Did you pod my cast? DID YOU POD MY CAST?

Martin Scorsese's Raging Bull is often cited as one of the greatest films of all time - one of the greatest boxing films, one of the greatest biopics, one of the greatest screen transformations and lead performances of all time. It's also one of the greatest uses of repetitive dialogue.

The great David Krumholtz joins us to talk about Robert De Niro, Joe Pesci, the luminous Cathy Moriarty, and the tonal tightrope this film walks.

Again - DID YOU POD MY CAST??

Check out Krumholtz's De Niro story

De Niro FUCK TRUMP

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Start spreadin' the news, we're podding today...

Broadway icon (and newly minted Disney Legend!) Lin-Manuel Miranda joins us to talk about what is possibly Scorsese's biggest bounce - 1977's New York, New York.

Cocaine, unchecked ambition, and a misguided attempt to try and get Liza Minnelli to do improv led Marty to some dark places. But hey - at least Robert De Niro learned how to play the saxophone! Expect lots of Broadway talk on this episode - with, of course, much props to the "Homie John Kander."

Check out the Disney Legends alongside Lin

Read Gmorning, Gnight!: Little Pep Talks for Me & You

Watch Mick respond to Mulaney 

Watch The Songwriters: An Evening with The Homie John Kander & Fred Ebb

Read Colored Lights

Check out The Drama Bookshop

Theme from Blank Check, Blank Check Produced and mixed by “Synth Horn Savant" Kyle Joseph

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You poddin' to me? Well, listener, actually - we are podding to you. For nearly FOUR HOURS.

The great Tracy Letts joins us to talk about Scorsese's monumental Taxi Driver, a film that is both fully ingrained in the American psyche and completely surprising and effective on every rewatch. Of course we're gonna spend our longest episode ever talking about it! This week, we discuss Paul Schrader's "God's Lonely Man" fixation, Ben's uncle's experiences as a New York City cab driver, the 1976 Oscars, Taxi Driver's themes of male loneliness and white supremacy, the incredible performances of Robert De Niro and Jodie Foster, and how totally normal it is to go to a porno theater on your second date. Oh, and there's plenty of physical media talk.

Taxi Driver discussion begins at 46:52

Listen to the 1976 Draft ep of the Big Picture

Check out MVD Marquee / Radiant / Vinegar Syndrom

Buy The Haunting to listen to Tracy and Sean do a commentary

Watch Bette Davis and Robert Wise, Oscars 1987

Watch "The King of Horror"

Read Transcendental Style in Film

Read You'll Never Eat Lunch in This Town Again

Read Drama: An Actor's Education

Read Night-Shifting for the Hip Fleet “By Mark Jacobson

Listen to Marty go Hogg wild

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"Martin Scorsese doesn't make movies about women" - WRONG. "Martin Scorsese doesn't make movies that would work as a long-running workplace sitcom" - ALSO WRONG.

Katey Rich joins us to chat about Scorsese's unexpected follow-up to Mean Streets, 1974's Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore. We're talking diners, Ellen Burstyn, parenting strategies, "women's pictures," and far more Hootie & The Blowfish than you'd expect from this episode. We're also not "trying silence," okay?

Buy the Hootie and the Blowfish shirt Katey (and David) have. 

Listen to the Screen Draft eps with Griffin and Katey.

Read about how Katherine LaNasa says Ghost of Ex-Husband Dennis Hopper Haunted Her: 'It Was Super Upsetting.'

Read Vincent Canby’s review.

Subscribe to Prestige Junkie at the Ankler and Fighting in the War Room.

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We're heading to Little Italy's San Gennaro festival this week with Griffy Parm, David Bags, and the great Miriam Bale as we chat about 1973's Mean Streets - a major breakthrough for both Martin Scorsese and Robert DeNiro. Join us as we chat about the seismic impact this film had on American cinema, DeNiro's screen persona, those iconic needledrops, and the ways racism and misogyny permeate the film's atmosphere. Also - did you know this movie was mostly filmed in Los Angeles!?!

Listen to Bobby on Off Menu

Follow @judis.annie on Instagram

Read the Next Scorsese series in Esquire

Listen to SPIRIT OF THE BEEHIVE

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Knock knock! Who's there? MARTY, THAT'S WHO! Welcome to the first installment in PODCASTFELLAS - our supersized series on the films of short king and Italian-American asthmatic Martin Scorsese. This guy made some pretty good movies, huh.

This week, Griffin, David, and Ben discuss Scorsese's Little Italy upbringing and his two first features - 1967's Who's That Knocking at My Door? and 1972's Boxcar Bertha. One feels like a film school parody of Scorsese movie. The other, a not-scuzzy-enough exploitation picture. Neither really feel like his true debut.

Check out Mostly True: The West's Most Popular Hobo Graffiti Magazine by Bill Daniel Author

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Surprise! In a first for Blank Check, we’re dropping a bonus main-feed episode featuring a conversation with the Academy Award-winning director of the films we just covered. The great Andrew Stanton joins us for a delightful conversation about Pixar, what happened to scatting, and how Elmo messed everything up for everyone. He answers many questions from Griffin (the Pixar nerd formerly known as FlikLover98), and goes in depth on the ending of WALL-E. Enjoy!

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Woody, Buzz, and Jessie are back - and they're making us freak out about social media! Join Griffin, David, Ben, and Marie as they discuss Andrew Stanton's latest film - this summer's blockbuster hit Toy Story 5. David gets to talk about being a parent. Marie and Ben get to talk about wanting to be parents. And Griffin gets to talk about his special interest - the Toy Story franchise.

Special thanks to Nick “Tiger” Wiger (Doughboys, How Did This Get Played?) and Aiko Tanaka (@aikocomedy) for help with the Japanese translations.

Read Sucker: My year as a degenerate gambler By McKay Coppins

Watch Please take Toy Story 4 away from me by Jenny Nicholson

Read: Toy Story Confronts a Nightmare of Modern Parenting By David Sims

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Did you know that Andrew Stanton released TWO movies this year? Toy Story 5, of course, but also the centuries-spanning sci-fi yarn In the Blink of an Eye?! This episode is dedicated to the latter - kind of. Theater critic and brother of the show Joey Sims joins us to chat about a BUNCH of things, not limited to In The Blink of an Eye; Off-Broadway plays, caveman movies, Power Rangers, and the status of the Lost in Space IP. It's a tangent-heavy listen, folks.

Listen to Joey’s Pod: House Closed: Theater We Saw

Read about how Off-Broadway's PERFECT CRIME and THE OFFICE halted performances due to theft of pipes at the theatre

Check out the Hayden Planetarium at the New York Museum of Natural History 

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Sing in us, O Muse, and let us tell the story of four cunning podcasters, wanderers who gained entry into three different large format screenings of Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey across three cities and two continents.

This week, we defied the gods to record an episode with missing King of Ithaca himself, Griffin Newman, as he continues his own mythical journey of trying to survive this European heat wave. Join us for a sensible two-and-a-half-hours gushing about this incredible cinematic event, breaking down our favorite set pieces and performances, and discussing previous attempts to bring The Odyssey to the screen. That Christopher Nolan really can't seem to bounce a check these days, can he?

Read Richard Nilsen’s review of the 1997 Odyssey miniseries.

Check out the Picture House in the UK if you are there. 

Check out Mile End Kicks.

Read the classic tweet /post.

Read Bilge’s article about the making of the Odyssey.

Read David’s review. 

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Have you seen Dory? We have!

Zach Cherry joins us to talk about 2016's Finding Dory, a film that made a kajillion dollars and set off a run of four Pixar sequels in a row. In this episode, we're talking about Ellen DeGeneres, animating characters without mouths, the success of Modern Family, live action remakes of already live action films, and Zach's proposed future spinoffs for the Nemo franchise. Young Marlin, Old Marlin, Old Nemo - the possibilities are endless!

Read: After 30 years of Toy Story, Woody and Buzz face the tech age as a Pixar legend comes full circle in E.W. By Nick Romano.

Watch the trailer for The End of Oak Street.

Watch 72 Hours when it comes out

Check out the last Raaaatscraps show on August 8th 

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We are going to Barsoom with 2012's John Carter - a film that bounced almost as much as the titular hero bounced around on Mars! Matt Singer joins us to talk about this legendary flop - the cursed marketing campaign, the year of Taylor Kitsch, and Disney's acquisition of Marvel and Star Wars, which effectively made John Carter irrelevant almost immediately. Plus, we spend a lot of time talking about X-Men Origins: Wolverine, for some reason.

Read Second-Act Twist By Tad Friend

and

The Untold Story of Disney’s $307 Million Bomb ‘John Carter’: ‘It’s a Disaster’ by Drew Taylor

Pre-Order Matt's Book

Read Matt's Writing

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Put on your pod-day clothes, there's lots of world out there! We're joined by David Ehrlich to discuss WALL-E this week - a film many consider to be Stanton's (and Pixar's) crowning achievement, and a film David Ehrlich's son has watched upwards of a million times. Join us for a long-ranging conversation that includes context around Disney's 2006 acquisition of Pixar, discussion about the film's depiction of humans, and speculation about the mental health of robots.

Read: Frankie Muniz Hasn’t Spoken to Hilary Duff in 22 Years, Says Her Mom Interfered in ‘Agent Cody Banks’ Casting and ‘It Pissed Me Off’: ‘I Regret Not Staying Friends With Her’

Check out Erlich’s Review of Lee Cornin’s The Mummy

Listen to Griffin on Podcast Like It’s Talking About Monsters Inc.

Read Ehrlich’s Interview with Stanton

Read Ehrlich’s piece on Alamo Drafthouse

Listen to Ben discuss his good friend Johnny5 on The Flop House

Cool Dad Raising Daughter On Media That Will Put Her Entirely Out Of Touch With Her Generation

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Welcome to PODD-C, our series on the films of Pixar stalwart Andrew Stanton! This week, we're kicking off with 2003's Finding Nemo, a film that ushered in nearly two decades of Ellen DeGeneres supremacy and made millions of children remember the exact address of one "P. Sherman." Writer Rebecca Alter joins us to chat about Nemo's immaculate screenplay, the Finding Nemo attractions within Disney Parks, and the under-the-sea craze that had Nemo, Spongebob, and Shark Tale all hitting at the same time. Pixar obsessives - rejoice! Griffin really gets to nerd out here.

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This is "Spielberg Face: The Movie." This is radical empathy. This is Emily Blunt Supremacy. This is DISCLOSURE DAY.

Griffin, David, Ben, and Marie break down Steven Spielberg's latest offering, his first sci-fi film and his first contemporary-set film since War of the Worlds in 2005. It's bound to be divisive. We mostly love it. We've got trains, Fableman dynamics, car chases, Janusz Kaminski pools of light, expressions of awe and wonderment - all of Steve's greatest hits! Join us for a wide ranging discussion about aliens, cynicism, and Michael Caine riding a giant bee (completely unrelated to this film).

Listen to Regina Hall on Good Hang with Amy Poehler.
Check out who is getting this year’s Honorary Oscars. 

Watch the Close Encounters SNL Sketches.

Listen to The Rewatchables in ‘2001: A Space Odyssey’ With Bill Simmons, Steven Spielberg, and Sean Fennessey.

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We're talking about a very long walk this week as Alex Ross Perry joins us to discuss Peter Weir's final film, 2010's gulag escape drama The Way Back. Remember those couple of years when Jim Sturgess was everywhere? Remember when Peter Weir could barely get distribution for his follow-up to Master & Commander? Dire times. As is the case with most ARP episodes, expect some wild takes about everything from the Coen brothers to World War II movies, plus a very detailed rundown of the National Geographic Films slate.

Check out Videoheaven on the Criterion Channel

Buy some Pavements Merch / Blu-Ray

Listen to Critical Darlings discuss Train Dreams

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Beat to quarters, men..and nice Brazilian lady holding an umbrella! We're sailing the high seas with John Hodgman this week as we unpack one of David Sims' favorite films - 2003's Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World. We're talking Crowe. We're talking Bettany. We're talking James Cameron's Mexican water tank. We're talking soused hog and we're talking Saluting Day. And yes, we are talking BOATS. Is Ben about to enter his Salty Dog Era? He should!

If you wish to inquire about Ship Happens, shiphappensbrooklin@gmail.com.

Check out the rest of Patrick O’Brian’s work.

Read New 'Master and Commander' Film In The Works, But Russell Crowe And Paul Bettany Probably Won't Be Back BY Ben Pearson. 

Listen to The Lex G Podcast.

Pop over to the Sunken Harbour Club if you’re in NY. 

Watch Medieval Barber Theodoric of York - SNL

Read Grab your breeches, hoist the mainsail and prepare for an epic ride -- but is 'Master and Commander' seaworthy? By Mick Lesalle 

Watch Dicktown on Hulu

Read Hodgman’s Books in any format

Subscribe to Hodgman’s Substack

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The Mandalorian and Grogu is the first new Star Wars movie in 7 years. It was also directed by Jon Favreau while he was making grilled cheese sandwiches. What the heck is going on with our favorite franchise? "Bad Boy of Blank Check" Chris Gethard returns to the pod to discuss The State of Star Wars: the deal with Dave Filoni, the Male Loneliness Epidemic, how watching Andor felt like texting your ex, and the complete and utter catastrophe of Rotta the Hutt. It's a cathartic three hours, so grab your Grogu Nilla Nummies and buckle up.

Listen to Hits Different

Listen to Beautiful Anonymous

Watch TCGS #28 | Ruin This Show

Watch Chris Gethard: Career Suicide 

Read The Bracing Authenticity of Chris Gethard's Career Suicide

Check out Dave Filoni’s “Plan” 

Read Star Wars: Thrawn Series by Timothy Zahn

Read the New Canon Novels

Read The Rise of the Fools by Allison P. Davis

Read the Kathleen Kennedy Exit Interview

Watch The George Lucas Talk Show LIVE From Smodcastle with Kevin Smith and Chris Gethard (2024)

Check out Smodcastle Cinema 

Watch the 2020 Disney Investor Day Presentation

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Good morning! And in case we don't see ya, good afternoon, good evening, and good night! JD Amato - often the Christof of Blank Check - joins us for a super-sized episode about Peter Weir's The Truman Show. We're getting into the history of reality entertainment, the implications of Christof's methods, the insanity of this movie's Oscar snubs, Jim Carrey's historic 1990s, and Matt Gaetz's childhood. Did you know that Matt Gaetz grew up in the Truman Show house? Really makes you think. Anyway - we hope you join us for a spirited conversation, but not before you pour yourself a mug of Mococoa Cocoa.

⁠Read David's article with Ed Harris - A New Way of Looking at To Kill a Mockingbird ⁠

⁠Buy J.D.'s Book The Endless Game⁠

⁠Watch The Undercovers ⁠

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Peter Weir's Fearless is about a man who survives a plane crash and finds that he is no longer allergic to strawberries. It's also a deeply affecting, soulful exploration on what it means to be alive. And, as David Sims says - it's the "final boss" of plane crash movies. "Hitmaker" Timothy Simons joins us to chat about Jeff Bridges, Rosie Perez, "pink cloud syndrome," and aerophobia in this episode, so fasten your seatbelts and brace for impact!

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Most filmmakers dream of making ambitious, big-budget epics once they're able to cash in their "blank check." Peter Weir wanted to make Green Card. Writer and romcom expert Esther Zuckerman joins us to talk about this 1990 oddity, released the same year as Pretty Woman, but centered around the star persona of Gérard Depardieu instead of Julia Roberts. We're talking about the romcom genre, the many attempts to bring international stars to Hollywood, the golden age of Andie MacDowell movies, and the undeniable smokeshow that was early 90s Bebe Neuwirth in this episode. Pardon our French. Literally.

Get Esther's Book Falling In Love at the Movies

Read FILM VIEW; 'Green Card' Apes 'Pretty Woman'

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Boys and girls, please open your textbooks. Rip out the pages. Carpe Diem.

We're seizing the day and talking about 1989's Dead Poets Society with filmmaker Nia DaCosta in this episode, but don't get too wild and change your name to Nuwanda or anything! This week, we discuss House MD, prep schools, the fact that David Sims played Puck in a high school production, and Robin Williams' Oscar legacy. O Podcast, my podcast!

Read about Franny's weirder cut

Check out Jack Black's YouTube

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We all have those moments where we just want to disengage from conventional society. We often yearn to go "off the grid." But, would we ever want to go to the Mosquito Coast? HELL NO. Sean Fennessey joins us to chat about Peter Weir's 1986 film that tests the limits of Harrison Ford's likability to the extent that Ben Hosley would describe it as "anti-smile." Allie Fox is a bad hang. The Mosquito Coast? GOOD MOVIE.

Listen to Griffin and David on the Big Picture

Watch Harrison Ford on Conan spoil Star Wars 7

The Great Railway Bazaar

Read Roger Ebert’s review of Paul Blart Mall Cop

Read Rembert Explains America: Burning Man Forever

Listen to The A24 Podcast: A Bigger Canvas with Martin Scorsese & Joanna Hogg

Dive into the Hogg-verse with Davis piece on Joanna Hogg

Watch Ham Hat

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Strap in, DobMob...we're going to Amish Country! The Big Picture's Amanda Dobbins joins us to talk about Peter Weir's Witness, perhaps the zenith of Harrison Ford's hotness, and the film that garnered him his sole Oscar nomination. We're talking Rumspringa, birds and birdhouses (Amanda is not a fan), Philadelphia's 30th Street Station, and young Viggo (which naturally lends itself to LOTR discussion). Listen up, or else you'll be shunned from the Blankie community!

Listen to Griffin and Ben on The Daily Zeitgeist⁠

⁠Check out the Kyle Chandler Men's Health Cover mentioned ⁠

⁠Watch Tracy Letts talk shit about Star Wars⁠

⁠Read Roger Ebert's Review⁠

⁠Listen to The Big Picture⁠

⁠Listen to Jam Session⁠

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Tracy Letts - Pulitzer and Tony winner, but most importantly The King of Physical Media - makes his much-anticipated Blank Check debut on an episode about a film that has no legitimate BluRay release. The irony! This week, we're discussing Peter Weir's The Year of Living Dangerously, a romantic drama set against the backdrop of Indonesian political unrest. We're discussing the star-power of Mel Gibson, the improbable performance of Linda Hunt, and, because this is Blank Check - the trench run at the end of Star Wars. Plus, we present the King of Physical Media with some meticulously chosen discs.

Log your physical media using CLZ

Check out Night Owl Video if your are in the Brooklyn area.

⁠Listen to The 1988 Movie Draft, The 1982 Movie Draft and The Legal Draft Episodes of The Big Picture

Read the Linda Hunt Interview

Listen to Mike Duncan's Revolutions

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This week, we are honored to welcome Australian filmmaker Jennifer Kent to the podcast as we discuss Peter Weir's devastating classic Gallipoli. In addition to bringing much needed context on the history of Australian cinema, this episode also delves into the significance of the Gallipoli Campaign in the Aussie national consciousness, the undersung career of actor Mark Lee, and the genius of Peter Weir's approach to telling this story. Plus, we get to ask Jennifer about her role in Babe: Pig in the City AND we ask her to tell her buddy Justin Kurzel how much Ben loves his Assassin's Creed movie.

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Peter Weir's follow up to Picnic at Hanging Rock - 1978's The Last Wave - deals with similar themes, with colonialism butting against the wild mysticism of Australia's land and people. However, this time...it's WET AS HELL. BenDavid Grabinski - the filmmaker behind the upcoming Mike & Nick & Nick & Alice - joins us to talk about this beguiling film, apocalyptic thinking, Richard Chamberlain's status as the king of TV miniseries, and Tom Shadyac's Dragonfly, weirdly enough.

Watch BenDavid's new movie Mike & Nick & Nick & Alice

If you're in New York, be sure to go to Sunken Harbor Club or Nitehawk Trivia

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On St. Valentine's Day in 1900, a group of podcasters set out to record an episode about Peter Weir's Picnic At Hanging Rock. Some were never to return...because they got addicted to the calming sounds of pan flute! Filmmaker Jane Schoenbrun joins us to chat about this 1975 classic of Australian cinema, and we're getting into the eerie qualities that make this film such an enduring mystery. From Rachel Roberts' wig drama to frame rate manipulation...from the Aboriginal concept of "dream time" to the casting of actual private school girls...there's much to unpack. But don't worry, we also spend a lot of time discussing The Grabber from The Black Phone 2.

Check out Jane's Dream Film Syllabus

Watch the Virgin Suicides Zoom Reunion

Read Australian Gothic: Peter Weir’s ‘Picnic at Hanging Rock’ at 50 by Tim Pelan

Check out Jane's Sully Tumblr

Pre-Order Jane's Book Public Access Afterworld

Pan flute accompaniment composed and performed by Alex Mitchell

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Bonjour! Erm...we mean...G'day mates! Our Peter Weir series PODNIC AT HANGING CAST kicks off with Weir's 1974 feature debut The Cars That Ate Paris, a film about the guy who plays Napoleon in the Bill & Ted movies getting stranded in a quirky and murderous Australian town. We're getting into the origins of the Australian New Wave, the various "calling card" projects that Weir made in the beginning of his career, and this film's spiky car which Ben has a lot of affection for, obviously.

Check out the Steve Martin Cold Open - Saturday Night Live

Listen to Griff on Comedy Bang!Bang!

Check out Dirty Laundry on Dropout

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Live from our windowless studio in Downtown Brooklyn, it's the 11th Annual Blankies! Joe Reid joins us once again to give out golden Wattos to our favorite films, performances, and craftspeople of the year. Some of our picks are certainly part of the greater award season conversation. Others are Materialists. Join us as we honor the best Putters and Murmurs, the Wettest flicks of the year, and as Griffin debuts his latest Billy Crystal opening showtune.

Listen to This Had Oscar Buzz

Watch Igby Goes Down

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Our Lynne Ramsay series comes to a close with last year's Die My Love, which brings us to the realization - damn, have we really never talked about Jennifer Lawrence before? Join us and Vulture's Alison Willmore as we do a full career deep-dive on J.Law, and grapple with this film and Mubi's decision to purchase it out of Cannes for a buttload of money.

Read the NY Mag profile of Darren Aronofsky from 2017

Read Alison's work at Vulture

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In 2018, Lynne Ramsay released You Were Never Really Here, a film about a completely implausible scenario...a townhouse on the East side of Manhattan houses a sex trafficking operation that implicates high-level government officials in its web of depravity???? Could you even imagine?!! Hollywood Handbook's Sean Clements joins us to chat about this eerily relevant film, the literary career of Jonathan Ames, Joaquin Phoenix's screen persona, and Joseph Gordon Levitt's recently announced follow-up to Don Jon.

Listen to Hayes Davenport's (not a guest on this episode) episode of High & Mighty where he talks about newspaper comics.

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The time has come for us to talk about Kevin. The New Yorker's Jia Tolentino joins us to talk about Lynne Ramsay's depiction of every parent's worst nightmare - 2011's We Need To Talk About Kevin. We need to talk about how Griffin grew up with Ezra Miller, and even auditioned against them to play Kevin. We need to talk about Lionel Shriver's awful politics. We need to talk about Tilda Swinton comparing her performance here to Buster Keaton. And we need to again explain the whole Fantastic Beasts franchise to another guest who is blissfully unaware of Credence Barebone.

Read Jia's Profile of Jennifer Lawrence and her other work at the New Yorker.

Check out the r/HowIsLivingThere

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Almost four years ago, Producer Ben Hosley watched Sam Raimi's "A Simple Plan" and proclaimed that if he'd been in that scenario, everything would have worked out perfectly. With the gleefully satisfying "Send Help," Raimi gives Ben the ending he's always wanted. Join Ben, Griffin, David, and Marie as they chat about the endless likability of Rachel McAdams, the heel turn of Dylan O'Brien, and how the various employees of Blank Check Productions would fare on a deserted island.

Read "Dylan O’Brien Is Ready to Talk About That Accident"

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Mommy's back! Emily Yoshida joins the gang to talk about 2002's Morvern Callar, a surprisingly tender film about grief, starting over, and taking a Jet2 Holiday. We're chatting about Samantha Morton's unconventional star quality, our personal history with mixtapes, and the Fantastic Beasts franchise for some reason. Plus, Ben reveals his love of seaside snow, Griffin adds some context from the source material (or whatever he could translate from the Scottish dialect), and everyone agrees that Morvern did nothing wrong.

Watch Shogun Season 1 

Check out the official Shogun podcast

Listen to the Emily’s Traitors Podcast: First To Breakfast

Watch Carnival of Souls

Watch the Romano Tours SNL Sketch

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We need to pod about Glasgow. We need to pod about the arresting inner lives of these complicated protagonists. We need to pod about every incredible project Lynne Ramsay has been attached to over the past 25 years that never actually happened. So yeah, WE NEED TO POD ABOUT CASTVIN! Join us as we discuss Ramsay’s debut film Ratcatcher, a striking study of a young boy on the precipice of adolescence in the slums of 1970s Glasgow. Ben discovers that he adores this movie. Griffin discovers that he can make “Lin Manuel Ramsey” a bit. And everyone discovers that Scottish accents are not that easy to imitate.

Watch the Characters Welcome Sketch from Tristan Griffin

Watch Timmy on Fallon

Check out Meshes of the Afternoon

Watch The Mother Project

Check out Notes on the Cinematograph

Watch Barry Jenkins in the Criterion Closet

Listen to the Top 21 Sports movies of the 21st century episode of the Bill Simmons Podcast

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Join Pulp Men (and Woman) of the Year Griffin, David, Ben, and Marie as they discuss Park Chan Wook’s latest offering, the silly and sublime No Other Choice. We’re talking about paper, AI-proof jobs, the handsomeness of Lee Byung-hun, the possibility that Director Park is the Michael Jordan of dissolves, and the fact that this is likely Griffin’s favorite film of 2025. Plus, David breaks down over the finale of Stranger Things, and we all apologize for a bunch of stuff.

Read the Chevy Chase New York Times profile.

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Testing, testing…does anybody know? Is this thing on? It depends on who you ask, frankly. The Blank Check team are divided on Bradley Cooper’s latest offering, the divorce dramedy Is This Thing On? Can you just walk in off the street to do an open mic at the Comedy Cellar? No. Is Peyton Manning one of our finest athlete actors? Yes. Is Griffin’s opinion of this film possibly strained by his anxiety over the New York City mayoral election? Probably. Join us for an episode that we hope is funnier than Will Arnett’s sad sack stand-up, but also probably not as brilliant as Bradley Cooper’s performance as a guy named “Balls.”

Read the Cybertruck article

Listen to Cannes I Kick It

Watch the Vic Mensa ft. Wyclef Jean performance on Colbert

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We went back to Pandora and we all fell in love with a very special lady. She’s a bit prickly. A bit unconventional. But boy, is she something! Join us as we chat Avatar: Fire and Ash, aka VARANG: THE AWAKENING, the third installment in Big Jim’s Sully family saga. Yes, this movie’s a bit messier than the previous ones. Yes, it repeats many of the same beats as The Way of Water. No, we do not care. We are too distracted by our new Na’vi queen.

Listen to Big Jim drop Big Lore on The Town with Matt Belloni (Part 1 - Part 2)

If you're in the area check out Nitehawk Trivia 

Watch the Anaconda Trailer to have 3 Bad Minutes

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It’s pretty hard being the governor of an unnamed state when you’re a 34-year-old woman with a husband who’s the heir to a local pizza empire and you’ve got a brother who has agoraphobia and your sleazy dad keeps leaving you weird voicemails and Julie Kavner is narrating your entire life story! Wooo, that was a lot. James L. Brooks’ Ella McCay is A LOT. Richard Lawson joins us to chat about this very strange movie that feels like a real outlier at contemporary multiplexes. If anything, Ella McCay is a refreshing throwback. Kind of. Minus a few glaring, mind-boggling missteps. Anyway, join us for a fun conversation about this latest Brooksian offering, and stick around for a very exciting announcement about the expansion of Blank Check Productions! 

Subscribe to Richard’s newsletter Premier Party

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Honey Don’t? Honey probably shouldn’t have. But that’s okay, because Honey, we’re gonna talk about it anyway! Writer and illustrator Mattie Lubchansky joins us to close out our Coens series with Ethan and Tricia’s latest offering from earlier this year. How do we feel about Margaret Qualley and Aubrey Plaza as performers? How do we feel about Chris Evans’ “year of trying stuff”? How do we feel about the threatened third film in this Lesbian B-Movie trilogy, “Go Beavers!”? Well, honey, you’ll just have to listen to find out.

Plus - stay tuned after this episode to hear our introduction to The Hudsucker Proxy from our screening at Friend of the Fest at the American Cinematheque!

⁠Read Mattie's books⁠

⁠Check out Mattie's Wife Jaya's writing⁠

⁠Check out Slow Xmas 5

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Two gals and a briefcase full of dicks. What more could an 84 minute caper need? mxmtoon joins us to chat about Ethan Coen and Tricia Cooke’s lesbian road trip movie Drive Away Dolls, and brings with her the fascinating perspective of someone whose first Coen movie was…Drive Away Dolls! We’re chatting about Ethan and Tricia’s unconventional relationship, the legacy of Cynthia PlasterCaster, and the unlikely leading man trajectory of Pedro Pascal. Plus, we’re mourning the dearth of lesbian bars and Geraldine Viswanathan vehicles in our current cultural climate.

Check out mxmtoon’s YouTube Channel

Read Ethan’s Collection of short stories 

Support The Lipstick Lounge if you are in Nashville Or  Sugar and Spice Bar, The Cattyshack, The Cubby Hole, Gingers  

Check out Demon Slayer

Follow mxmtoon on Twitch

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You can’t say “Macbeth” in a theater, but you can certainly say it on a podcast! Dana Schwartz joins us (in her third Blank Check appearance on a witch-centered film) to talk about Joel Coen’s The Tragedy of Macbeth, the first solo-directorial effort from a Coen Brother after their amicable split. We’re debating the success of Frances McDormand and Denzel Washington’s performances, learning about the history of Scottish kings, and discovering Ben Hosley’s family crest in the first Blank Check episode devoted to a work of Shakespeare. Trust us, this isn’t homework. It’s fun!

Listen to Noble Blood

Listen to Hoax 

Read Anatomy A Love Story

Pre-order The Arcane Arts

Read If Roast Beef Could Fly

Check out Forbidden Planet

Watch Jefferson Mays’ A Christmas Carol

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Six segments. Four legendary movie podcasters. Three and a half hours of keeping David Sims away from his family. Welcome to our Ballad of Buster Scruggs episode! How Did This Get Made’s Paul Scheer and Jason Mantzoukas join the Two Friends to talk about the Coens’ final film together (as of this recording), a grab bag of western vignettes that could have been titled “A Million Ways to Die in the West” if Seth MacFarlane hadn’t already claimed it. We’re picking our favorite segments, chatting about the “wild west” of Netflix projects back when Scruggs was greenlit, and ranking the Coens’ filmography before we cover their solo directorial efforts. Oh, and Jason has a few bones to pick with Griffin and David about a certain section of the True Grit episode.

Listen to How Did This Get Made - Grizzly II: Revenge w/ Jake Johnson

Listen to the Coens on Fresh Air

Check out the Parker Novels

Check out the Darwyn Cook Parker novels graphic novel adaptation

Listen to Telly Savalas’ Album

Listen to Tim Blake Nelson on WTF

Read Joshua Pease piece on Buster Scruggs

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Would that it twere so simple to lasso that lazy ol’ moon! This week, we’re chatting about all the studio shenanigans in Hail, Caesar! with our pal Shirley Li. Speaking of Shirley, we all knew she was skilled at getting David “The Dog” Sims off the leash, but did you know that she also attended researcher JJ’s wedding?! Lore drop! Join us as we unpack the careers of Channing Tatum and Alden Ehrenreich, gush over the gorgeous near-Technicolor cinematography, and celebrate the love of da moviesh that comes through so clearly in this film.

Read Shirley's work

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🎵🎶Puh-pa-please Mr. Kennedy (uhoh!) please won’t you listen to our puh-podcast🎶🎵This week we broadcast, not from a balcony, but from the Blank Check office, with guest Rachel Zegler (she connects with people, JJ’s research confirms)! Coming off of back to back Blank Checks the Coen’s took their time to release Inside Llewyn Davis, a somber comedy following a folk singer stuck in a failure loop. We’ve got two dogs off the leash, two fart detectives, the Coen’s attempting the Armageddon method of casting Llewyn, and the cold reality of pursuing the arts.

Read Jack Antonoff’s slander in print

Watch Carey Mulligan in 2015’s Far From the Madding Crowd

Listen to the penultimate episode of WTF 

Get the Evita Album

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Kathryn Bigelow is back. But are WE so back? Not quite. The gang discusses the recent release A House of Dynamite, a film in which the president listens to podcasts, Tracy Letts loves the Mets, and the city of Chicago may or may not be completely leveled by an atomic bomb. Do we kind of miss Mark Boal now? Are we praying Kathryn Bigelow directs something a little more in line with Strange Days or Point Break next? Would Ethan Hunt have saved this movie? Yes, yes, and yes.

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We love to pull the cork. Comedian (and probably the biggest Greek-American entertainer of our time) Stavros Halkias joins us to chat about 2010’s True Grit, the Coens’ true attempt to cash their post-Oscar blank check. We’re talking about Hailee Steinfeld’s incredible performance. We’re talking about Jeff Bridges’ distinctive mumbly delivery. We’re talking about how this film is a considerable upgrade over the John Wayne original in possibly every way. We’re also talking about how everyone probably smells awful in this movie. And we’re talking a lot about the Morris Chestnut network TV show “Watson” for some reason. Join us by the campfire, it’s a fun time!

Check out Bugonia

Read David’s Interview with Yorgos

Check out the profile of the owner of Panathinaikos B.C.

Check out Charles Portis’ other books

Watch Booboo Kills Yogi" ending

See Stavvy Live

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The time has come for us to lock the gates. On the occasion of the end of WTF, Marc Maron joins us to talk about chaos, God, mathematics, and Jewish identity as we dive into 2009’s A Serious Man. Highlights of this episode include Marc asking, “Is this a bit?” when David opens the dossier, Marc’s discussion of his audition to play Larry Gopnik, and Marc telling Griffin that he’s proud of him. Not a dry eye in the house, folks. This is a special one.

Listen to WTF

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What did we learn, Palmer? That 2008’s Burn After Reading is pretty freakin’ hilarious, sir. Our Fran (Hoepfner, not McDormand) joins us this week to talk about Joel and Ethan Coen’s madcap dark comedy about a bunch of morons living in the DC area. The way John Malkovich says “mem-waah”...George Clooney’s homemade dildo chair…Brad Pitt’s stupid face right before getting murked…it all adds up to a splendid tapestry of silliness. Listen, laugh, and maybe you can fit in a run afterwards.

Read Fran at Vulture

Subscribe to Fran Magazine

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