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The Woman King

It certainly feels great to cover a good movie again! Our mini-run of new releases ends with Gina Prince-Bythewood’s crowd-pleaser - the African female warrior epic “The Woman King”. We’ve got David’s exclusive report on the film’s world premiere at TIFF (humblebrag), a deep dive on the career of Viola Davis (did you know her early industry champions were Steven Soderbergh and George Clooney?), and some thoughts on how this film taps into Prince-Bythewood’s ongoing exploration o...

Confess, Fletch

Join BC:SF's for a review of Confess, Fletch. Topics include: the lack of promotion, the box office performance, streamers, the Mad Men secret past, a subtle Marcia Gay Harden performance and more! Alan Sepinwall joins this episode!

Pinocchio (2022) with Podcast: The Ride

The King of the Uncanny Valley - our boy Bob Zemeckis - is back with his spin on perhaps the most iconic un-real boy in cinema…it’s Pinocchio, baby! Our friends from Podcast: The Ride - two Disney daddies and one small wooden boy - join us to chat about Disney’s latest live-action remake, and we’re mostly just confused. How many days did Tom Hanks spend on set? Why are so many people in Hollywood eager to make their own Pinocchio adaptations? Did Leslie Zemeckis do mo-cap work for the...

The Spy Who Loved Me

Yes, it's Moore Bond! BC:SF's commentary series continues with 1977's The Spy Who Loved Me! Topics include: 70's wood grain, British luxury cars, Dive restaurant, swimming, Zach Cherry, and more!

Movie starts at...7:12

Three Thousand Years of Longing

George Miller returns with a sweeping romantic fantasy and if we had a djinn, we’d wish that more people went to see this movie in theaters!  Plus - Ben wishes for infinite sandwiches, and the two friends go long on Idris Elba and Tilda Swinton.

Join our Patreon for franchise commentaries and bonus episodes.

Follow us @blankcheckpod on 2022-09-11 04:00:00 +0000 UTC View Post

Lolita with Fran Hoepfner

How did they ever make a podcast of LOLITA? Let’s just say that it wasn’t easy, but thankfully our guest Fran Hoepfner is in her “brave era” and was more than up for the task! If our SPARTACUS episode was full of Tony Curtis impressions, we’re classing up the joint this week with plenty of James Mason bits. In this episode, Ben learns about the Hays Code, Griffin learns how to pronounce “Nabokov,” Fran learns that it is very difficult to eat a giant lollipop, and David learns wh...

The Man with the Golden Gun

BC:SF is back with post-sandwich energy and more Roger Moore era Bond! Topics include: third nipples, James Bond being a bit of a creep, Street Fighter II, the J.W. Pepper treatment, Madame Tussauds and more.

Movie starts at...3:24

Spartacus with Richard Lawson

I am Spartacus! I am Spartacus! Heck, we’re *all* Spartacus today as we talk about the “sword-and-sandals” epic that solidified Stanley Kubrick’s hit-making potential…and soured him on Hollywood forever. Vanity Fair’s Richard Lawson returns to the pod and we’re covering all the major topics: How did a young Kubrick manage all the different stars on set - many of whom were accomplished directors in their own right? Was Kirk Douglas’ chin cleft real? Did Dalton Trumbo write the ...

Live and Let Die

Checkmates! Presenting this year’s March Madness winner: the James Bond films starring Sir Roger Moore. Griff, David, and Ben kick off the new commentary series with 1973’s Live and Let Die. Topics include: the best Bond songs, a fear of sharks, Tee Hee’s robot arm, local possums, the career of Geoffrey Holder, and more!

Movie starts at...12:18

Paths of Glory with Sarah Marshall

Perhaps the most humanistic of Kubrick’s films, PATHS OF GLORY is a blistering study of injustice, middle-management, and anti-war sentiment. We’re down in the trenches this week with Sarah Marshall (“You’re Wrong About” and “You Are Good”), and we’re asking the big questions. Like - what crazy scheme did Timothy Carey pull during production that caused him to be fired as soon as all his closeups were filmed? Did Kirk Douglas take his hefty salary (a third of the total budget!...

The Killing with Patton Oswalt

If Stanley Kubrick’s previous two films were exercises in learning on the job, THE KILLING is where we start to see him put that knowledge into action. A thrilling noir, it allowed Kubrick to connect his passion for chess to a story about the best laid plans of a too ambitious crook. We couldn’t be more thrilled to welcome dream guest Patton Oswalt as we swap insane Timothy Carey stories, debate whether or not Rodney Dangerfield appears in the background of a scene, and suggest that Sterl...

SULLY - Blank Check LIVE! at the Bell House (June 8, 2022)

Passengers: this is your captain speaking. On June 8th, 300+ souls managed to sit through our Bell House live show dedicated to Clint Eastwood's SULLY, despite us experiencing dual laptop failure. The Blank Check crew - including Ben dressed as a sexy pilot and Marie dressed as a goose - still managed to safely convince all those in attendance that our love of SULLY is pointedly *not* a bit. The haters can go land at Teterboro Airport for all we care.

A NOTE FROM THE NTSB INVESTIGA...

Fear & Desire / Killer's Kiss

He dominated the field in this year’s 20th Century March Madness competition, and now we’re celebrating with a parade and a big brass band…it’s time for our series on the films of Stanley Kubrick - Pods Wide Cast! Join us as we fill in the background strokes of Kubrick’s early career - his childhood in the Bronx, his photography apprenticeship with Look Magazine - and as we discuss his first two features - 1953’s FEAR AND DESIRE and 1955’s KILLER’S KISS. Some burning questions...

The Batman

Marie Bardi joins BC:SF for the conclusion of our #NotAllBatMen commentary series with 2022’s The Batman. Topics include: the runtime, the l

Marie Bardi joins BC:SF for the conclusion of our #NotAllBatMen commentary series with 2022’s The Batman. Topics include: the runtime, the length of the movie, why 3 hours is way too long and more!

Movie starts at...1:58

Star 80 with Julie Klausner

Oof - this is a tough one. Incredibly divisive, is “STAR 80” a darkly cynical triumph about the perils of Hollywood and the failings of men? Or is it a too-sympathetic “Portrait of An Incel as a who cares?!” per our guest Julie Klausner? Join us for a very spirited discussion about Fosse’s difficult last film, where we touch upon the dangers of the true crime genre, the tendency for male creatives to prioritize the male perspective, and the ways in which this film complicates the fa...

All That Jazz with Lin-Manuel Miranda

It’s SHOWTIME, folks - and boy, are we jazzed about this episode! Broadway icon and actual Blank Check listener Lin-Manuel Miranda joins us to talk about what many consider to be Bob Fosse’s masterpiece, 1979’s “All That Jazz.” LMM surprises Griffin and David by bringing along an original copy of the film’s script, which offers some fascinating insights into Fosse’s blurring of the lines between memoir and fiction. We discuss the parallels between “All That Jazz” and LMM’s...

The Lego Batman Movie

The Batman commentary series continues with 2017’s The Lego Batman Movie. Topics include: the hybrid CGI animation using real Lego bricks an

The Batman commentary series continues with 2017’s The Lego Batman Movie. Topics include: the hybrid CGI animation using real Lego bricks and pieces, the Danish company’s evolution, the voice performances of the extended cast, Lego sets for grown-ups, and more!

Movie starts at...3:15

Lenny with Colin Quinn

Sure, Bob Fosse’s “Lenny” has beautiful cinematography, but does it effectively communicate that Lenny Bruce was funny? Is the narrative of stand-ups as “tortured truth tellers” overdone? 

We have THOUGHTS! Comedian and “stand-up historian” Colin Quinn joins us to talk about the legacy of Lenny Bruce, and what Fosse gets right (the milieu of the clubs, Valerie Perrine’s wonderful performance as Honey Bruce), and what he gets wrong (the actual humor). Plus - we enter...

Liza with a Z with Marie Bardi

For July's bonus episode, BC:SF is taking a deep dive into all things Liza Minnelli with the Bob Fosse directed 1972 concert film Liza with a Z. Marie Bardi joins the gang to discuss their favorite numbers, the best fits, getting names wrong, Liza's legacy as a cultural figure and more!

Cabaret with Rachel Zegler

Wilkommen and Bienvenue to our “Cabaret” episode! Literal Disney Princess and musical theater superstar Rachel Zegler joins us to gush over Fosse’s 1972 film - a game-changer for the musical genre, and an Oscar-winning guarantor for Fosse’s cinematic “blank check” after the failure of “Sweet Charity.” Topics discussed include: the differences between the screen version and the stage show; Joel Grey’s Emcee being nearly cut out of the film; Liza Minnelli crafting her own uniq...

Sweet Charity

The minute you walked in the joint…I could see you were a man of distinction, A REAL PODCASTER! “Pod That Jazzcast” - our series on the films of Bob Fosse - kicks off with a real humdinger of an episode, as the boys discuss 1969’s swinging technicolor musical “Sweet Charity.” For folks unfamiliar with Fosse, we give an overview of his life and career in dance and theater leading up to his film directorial debut, and attempt to decipher his creative obsessions (women, fear of baldi...

Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice - The Lost Episode (Remastered) (Ad-Free)

Back in March of 2016 when Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice was first released in theaters, Griffin, David, and Ben recorded a one-off episode about the film. Due to technical issues, much of the audio was lost.

An abridged version was released April 22, 2016.

Here is the newly remastered "Ultimate edition" of the lost episode. This Patreon exclusive sneak peak includes 36 minutes of never before released material!

Remastered by AJ McKeon

Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (Ultimate Edition)

Join Griffin, David, and Ben for the extended cut of Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice! Topics include: Batfleck, kryptonite origins, getting into the tub with clothes on, Mark Zuckerberg as the new archetype for villains, sandwich orders and more.

Movie starts at...0:55

Marvel Nerdfest

Towards the end of the Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness episode with guest Patrick Willems, David has to leave to make a screening of Elvis (2022), and soon after Griffin wraps things up.

But actually, Checkmates, the conversation continued! Please enjoy this post-show Patreon exclusive, and join us even deeper inside the multiverse. Presenting...the Marvel Nerdfest.

Patrick’s new film Night of the Coconut is available on Nebula (2022-06-26 17:01:01 +0000 UTC View Post

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness with Patrick Willems

Our Sam Raimi series concludes with his most recent film - not to mention the first MCU film we’ve covered on the main feed - it’s time for Doctor Strange 2! Patrick Willems joins us to address the important questions: What was Raimi *doing* for the nine years between this and Oz? Does Kevin Feige and his Marvel Machine overpower Raimi’s creative voice? Should “Wandavision” have been released after this movie? Is Schnipper’s on 8th Ave the ideal place to debrief after seeing a mov...

Batman & Robin

#NotAllBatMen commentary series continues with 1997’s Batman & Robin! Topics include: Clooney’s acting ticks, the careers of Uma Thurman and Alicia Silverstone, hail vs rain, The Wife sandwich, and more!

Movie starts at...1:57

Oz the Great and Powerful with Dana Schwartz

Ah, yes - we’ve arrived at the reason why we held off on covering Sam Raimi for so long…because we didn’t want to end our series on such a dismal note! “Oz the Great and Powerful” - Raimi’s last feature until the recent “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness” - features James Franco in a performance that guest Dana Schwartz (“Noble Blood”) characterizes as “having the energy of a hot boy in a school play who’s laughing with his friends in the front row.” It doe...

Drag Me to Hell with Jamie Loftus & Caitlin Durante

After the massive box office success of his Spider-Man movies, Sam Raimi went “back to basics” - returning to the gnarly demonic possession genre that he put his stamp on back in the “Evil Dead” days. This time, instead of the chin-god Bruce Campbell, we’ve got a particularly cherubic Alison Lohman in the starring role! The Bechdel Cast’s Caitlin Durante and Jamie Loftus join the #TwoFriends to chat about the goofy gross-out scares and economic recession relevance of 2009’s “D...

OLD DOGS - Blank Check LIVE! at the Bell House (May 12, 2022)

On a balmy evening last month, Griffin, David, Ben, and Marie gathered with 300-some Blankies at the Bell House in Brooklyn to screen a remarkable motion picture.

That's right - we're talking about Walt Becker's seminal 2009 disasterpiece OLD DOGS - a movie that only Griffin had seen before that night. We had *a lot* of questions.

For those of you who were unable to attend, we present to you an audio recording of the show. If you wish to put yourself through the psychological tort...

Spider-Man 3 with Jamelle Bouie

If “Spider-Man 2” had the reputation of being the greatest superhero movie of all time, “Spider-Man 3” had the inverse - a bloated mess with too many villains, and a very goofy Peter Parker going to the darkside, if by “darkside” you mean a trip to Men’s Warehouse and Hot Topic. But is that reputation justified? We’re gonna air on the side of…not REALLY. Notable Spidey 3 defender Jamelle Bouie (The New York Times, his podcast “Clear and Present Danger”) returns to Blank ...