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488 episodes
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Blank Check with Griffin & David Blank Check Productions
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- TV & Film
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4.7 • 483 Ratings
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Not just another bad movie podcast, Blank Check reviews directors' complete filmographies episode to episode. Specifically, the auteurs whose early successes afforded them the rare ‘blank check’ from Hollywood to produce passion projects. Each new miniseries, hosts Griffin Newman and David Sims delve into the works of film’s most outsized personalities in painstakingly hilarious detail. Produced by Ben Hosley.
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Dances with Wolves
In a first for Blank Check, we’re covering a filmmaker who has acted alongside our own Griffin Newman! In our premiere episode covering the directorial career of Draft Day co-star Kevin Costner, we’re unpacking his 1990 Best Picture winner, DANCES WITH WOLVES. Costner as personal mythmaker, Costner as “movie sports guy,” Costner as “hot guy who women all want to sleep with (?)”, Costner as man who decided - at a crucial (and early!) point in his career - to take a huge risk by making a 3-hour epic in an old-fashioned genre. He’s a fascinating figure. Come west with us, listeners, as we discover the frontiers within ourselves and within Lieutenant John Dunbar.
This episode is sponsored by:
Quince (quince.com/check)
Zocdoc (zocdoc.com/check)
Join our Patreon at patreon.com/blankcheck Follow us @blankcheckpod on Twitter and Instagram! -
Gigli with Jen D'Angelo
The first "G" in "Gigli" is pronounced like the "J" in “Jacques,” the second “G” is silent. Rhymes with "really." Now that that’s out of the way - we conclude our Martin Brest series with the turkey of all turkeys. The Bennifer original sin, the project that should have gotten Justin Bartha put in prison. That’s right, folks. We’re talking about one of the canonical “Worst Movies Ever Made” - 2003’s GIGLI. Screenwriter Jen D’Angelo joins us to talk about this fascinating cultural object, and makes a case that Ben Affleck is “good in this movie, actually.” Griffin and David disagree. We’re going to Baywatch!
Read the Variety Article referenced in the episode
Watch Martin Brest’s First Interview in 20 Years
Follow Jen on Instagram
This episode is sponsored by:
Bombas (bombas.com/check CODE: CHECK)
MUBI (mubi.com/blankcheck)
Join our Patreon at patreon.com/blankcheck Follow us @blankcheckpod on Twitter and Instagram! -
Meet Joe Black with Richard Lawson
He’s hot. He’s got frosted tips. He loves peanut butter. His lil swimmers may or may not look like skulls. He’s death, baby! And we’re meeting him this week! Vanity Fair’s Richard Lawson returns to the pod to chat about 1998’s three hour long “symphonic metaphysical romance” MEET JOE BLACK. How does this film play in a post-Succession, “eat the rich” context? How do we feel about the infamous Jamaican patois scenes? What are our memories of the weekend the Phantom Menace trailer came out in theaters? All that and more awaits you on the other side of the bridge.
Read Chad Hartigan’s article on Meet Joe Black
Read Richard’s work at Vanity Fair
Listen to Little Gold Men
Listen to Still Watching
This episode is sponsored by:
DrinkTrade.com/Check (CODE: CHECK)
ExpressVPN (ExpressVPN.com/check)
Join our Patreon at patreon.com/blankcheck Follow us @blankcheckpod on Twitter and Instagram! -
Scent of a Woman with David Krumholtz
Warning - this episode contains an ungodly amount of Pacino impressions. Listener discretion is advised.
“Actor’s actor” and local boy from Queens David Krumholtz becomes the second cast member of Oppenheimer and first person immortalized in Griffin’s beloved Disney Emoji Blitz to guest on our Martin Brest series as we talk about 1992’s dire SCENT OF A WOMAN. Would this movie be less terrible if it were at least 40 minutes shorter? What if the original first choice for Lt. Col. Frank Slade - Jack Nicholson - had done this film instead of Pacino? What if we swapped Philip Seymour Hoffman for the charisma vacuum that is Chris O’Donnell? Sadly, we can only imagine these scenarios. Join us for lots of candid Krumholtz anecdotes, a scorching hot take regarding the diner scene in Heat, and more!
Check out David in Lousy Carter
Join our Patreon at patreon.com/blankcheck Follow us @blankcheckpod on Twitter and Instagram! -
Midnight Run with Alan Sepinwall
In a first for Blank Check, Ben Hosley produces an entire episode while handcuffed and under threat of legal action. What else would you expect from a MIDNIGHT RUN episode? The great Alan Sepinwall returns to the pod to talk about Martin Brest’s fantastic cross-country buddy caper, a film that proved that DeNiro could do comedy and that Charles Grodin might be the funniest man alive. We’re talking about the unofficial Larry the Cable Guy sequel (?), the famous casting what-ifs (Cher!), and the magic that went into making this movie so breezy, effortless, and fun. We didn’t how good we had it back in 1988, did we?l
Pre-order Alan’s book, “Saul Goodman V. Jimmy McGill: The Complete Critical Companion to Better Call Saul”
Subscribe to What's Alan Watching
This episode is sponsored by:
MUBI (mubi.com/blankcheck)
Zocdoc (zocdoc.com/check)
Join our Patreon at patreon.com/blankcheck Follow us @blankcheckpod on Twitter and Instagram! -
Beverly Hills Cop with Adil & Bilall
An indelible synth theme by Harold Faltermeyer. A scene-stealing turn from Bronson Pinchot. A banana in a tailpipe. EDDIE FREAKING MURPHY. It’s no wonder that Martin Brest’s Beverly Hills Cop is one of the most beloved action comedies (and still the highest-grossing R-rated film adjusted for inflation). We couldn’t be more thrilled to have two of the hottest action directors in Hollywood - Bad Boys: Ride or Die’s Adil & Bilall - join us to talk about Brest’s blockbuster second feature, bringing all the expertise from their years spent developing Beverly Hills Cop 4. We’re getting into the Stallone of it all, the Simpson/Bruckheimer of it all, the Judge Reinhold of it all - while also taking some time to unpack the specific nuances that Brest brings as a director (as opposed to Tony Scott’s take on the sequel). And….yes. We talk about BATGIRL.
This episode is sponsored by:
Bombas (bombas.com/check CODE: CHECK)
MUBI (mubi.com/blankcheck)
Join our Patreon at patreon.com/blankcheck Follow us @blankcheckpod on Twitter and Instagram!
Customer Reviews
David Blows Chunks
Wet blanket stick in the mud.
“What if Marley & Me happened six times?”
Even though I’m a relatively listener, it was the David Fincher episodes that got me in the door. Great hosts, great guests, and endlessly quotable. This podcast owns bones.
Even though the highest rating I can give here is five stars, Blank Check is easily a gentleman’s six.
David Dogs Go Bark Bark
Let David off the leash! Arf arf arf!!!