Episodes

  • Dead Poets Society with Nia DaCosta

    Dead Poets Society with Nia DaCosta
    Apr 26 2026
    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 Sign up for Check Book, the Blank Check newsletter featuring even more “real nerdy shit” to feed your pop culture obsession. Dossier excerpts, film biz AND burger reports, and even more exclusive content you won’t want to miss out on. Join our Patreon for franchise commentaries and bonus episodes. Follow us @blankcheckpod on Twitter, Instagram, Threads and Facebook! Buy some real nerdy merch Connect with other Blankies on our Reddit or Discord For anything else, check out BlankCheckPod.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    2 hrs and 36 mins
  • The Mosquito Coast with Sean Fennessey

    The Mosquito Coast with Sean Fennessey
    Apr 19 2026
    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 Sign up for Check Book, the Blank Check newsletter featuring even more “real nerdy shit” to feed your pop culture obsession. Dossier excerpts, film biz AND burger reports, and even more exclusive content you won’t want to miss out on. Join our Patreon for franchise commentaries and bonus episodes. Follow us @blankcheckpod on Twitter, Instagram, Threads and Facebook! Buy some real nerdy merch Connect with other Blankies on our Reddit or Discord For anything else, check out BlankCheckPod.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    3 hrs and 6 mins
  • Witness with Amanda Dobbins

    Witness with Amanda Dobbins
    Apr 12 2026
    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 Sign up for Check Book, the Blank Check newsletter featuring even more “real nerdy shit” to feed your pop culture obsession. Dossier excerpts, film biz AND burger reports, and even more exclusive content you won’t want to miss out on. Join our Patreon for franchise commentaries and bonus episodes. Follow us @blankcheckpod on Twitter, Instagram, Threads and Facebook! Buy some real nerdy merch Connect with other Blankies on our Reddit or Discord For anything else, check out BlankCheckPod.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    2 hrs and 57 mins
  • The Year of Living Dangerously with Tracy Letts

    The Year of Living Dangerously with Tracy Letts
    Apr 5 2026
    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 Sign up for Check Book, the Blank Check newsletter featuring even more “real nerdy shit” to feed your pop culture obsession. Dossier excerpts, film biz AND burger reports, and even more exclusive content you won’t want to miss out on. Join our Patreon for franchise commentaries and bonus episodes. Follow us @blankcheckpod on Twitter, Instagram, Threads and Facebook! Buy some real nerdy merch Connect with other Blankies on our Reddit or Discord For anything else, check out BlankCheckPod.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    3 hrs and 22 mins
  • Gallipoli with Jennifer Kent

    Gallipoli with Jennifer Kent
    Mar 29 2026
    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. Sign up for Check Book, the Blank Check newsletter featuring even more “real nerdy shit” to feed your pop culture obsession. Dossier excerpts, film biz AND burger reports, and even more exclusive content you won’t want to miss out on. Join our Patreon for franchise commentaries and bonus episodes. Follow us @blankcheckpod on Twitter, Instagram, Threads and Facebook! Buy some real nerdy merch Connect with other Blankies on our Reddit or Discord For anything else, check out BlankCheckPod.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    2 hrs and 6 mins
  • The Last Wave with BenDavid Grabinski

    The Last Wave with BenDavid Grabinski
    Mar 22 2026
    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 Sign up for Check Book, the Blank Check newsletter featuring even more “real nerdy shit” to feed your pop culture obsession. Dossier excerpts, film biz AND burger reports, and even more exclusive content you won’t want to miss out on. Join our Patreon for franchise commentaries and bonus episodes. Follow us @blankcheckpod on Twitter, Instagram, Threads and Facebook! Buy some real nerdy merch Connect with other Blankies on our Reddit or Discord For anything else, check out BlankCheckPod.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    2 hrs and 36 mins
  • Picnic at Hanging Rock with Jane Schoenbrun

    Picnic at Hanging Rock with Jane Schoenbrun
    Mar 15 2026
    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 Sign up for Check Book, the Blank Check newsletter featuring even more “real nerdy shit” to feed your pop culture obsession. Dossier excerpts, film biz AND burger reports, and even more exclusive content you won’t want to miss out on. Join our Patreon for franchise commentaries and bonus episodes. Follow us @blankcheckpod on Twitter, Instagram, Threads and Facebook! Buy some real nerdy merch Connect with other Blankies on our Reddit or Discord For anything else, check out BlankCheckPod.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    2 hrs and 33 mins
  • The Cars That Ate Paris

    The Cars That Ate Paris
    Mar 8 2026
    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 Sign up for Check Book, the Blank Check newsletter featuring even more “real nerdy shit” to feed your pop culture obsession. Dossier excerpts, film biz AND burger reports, and even more exclusive content you won’t want to miss out on. Join our Patreon for franchise commentaries and bonus episodes. Follow us @blankcheckpod on Twitter, Instagram, Threads and Facebook! Buy some real nerdy merch Connect with other Blankies on our Reddit or Discord For anything else, check out BlankCheckPod.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    1 hr and 55 mins