Book and Film Globe Podcast

Book and Film Globe
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Everyone’s favorite literature and pop culture site is now a podcast. Entertaining, enlightening chat about books, film, streaming TV, and more with Neal Pollack, editor of Book and Film Globe and its top writers. Pollack is the author of ten semi-bestselling books of fiction and nonfiction, including Jewball, Never Mind the Pollacks, Downward-Facing Death, and the memoirs Alternadad and Pothead: My Life as a Marijuana Addict in the Age of Legal Weed.

  1. 06/12/2025

    BFG Podcast #200: 'The Phoenician Scheme,' 'Ballerina,' and A Final Wrap-Up

    This is the final episode of the BFG Podcast. We're as sad to see it go as you are, but editor and host Neal Pollack has a new job at the U.S. edition of The Spectator, the world's oldest magazine, and will no longer be seeing and talking about movies for a living. We had an extraordinary four years on the podcast, bringing you news and commentary nearly every week on a shoestring budget, but it's time to end our amazing little show. Neal welcomes his one and only guest this week, film critic Stephen Garrett, to discuss two new films and a bunch of older ones. First up, Wes Anderson's The Phoenician Scheme, which both Neal and Stephen agree stands above the usual fare that Anderson has been producing in recent years. That has a less to do with Anderson's endlessly arch visual style and more to do with emotional and fun performances from the film's three leads, Benicio del Toro, Mia Threapleton, and Michael Cera. There's also a fun basketball segment in the middle, and a poignant ending that makes this feel more like a movie and less like an art-school experiment. There's nothing particularly art-school about Ballerina, a side-sequel of sorts to the John Wick saga. Stephen and Neal both were able to see past the self-seriousness of John Wick and Wick-adjacent movies to see the slapstick heart at the film's center. There's an extended flamethrower battle toward the end that is one of the zaniest action sequences ever put to film. And Ana de Armas, while about the size of a peanut, has enough movie-star charm to hold it all together. Plus, there's an extended Keanu Reeves cameo. This is pretty fun. Finally, Neal and Stephen reconsider the hundreds of movies they've reviewed since 2018, when Neal took over the reigns. Mostly, they focus on the five-star movies, films that are good, but that reviewers reacted to in a personal way. They argue extensively about Once Upon A Time...In Hollywood, which Neal likes way more than Stephen, and First Man and Ad Astra, which Stephen likes way more than Neal. If you can take any one thing away from Neal Pollack's tenure at BFG, it's that he doesn't like movies where astronauts cry. Astronauts should never cry. They are in space. It is their dream. That's all from us at the BFG podcast. Thank you so much for listening over the years, and enjoy our final episode!

    41 min

  2. 05/28/2025

    BFG Podcast #199: 'Mission: Impossible: The Final Reckoning,' Season 2 of 'The Rehearsal,' and a report from Cannes

    After a two-week hiatus, the BFG Podcast is back, and the culture belongs to us as usual. Host Neal Pollack has returned from his anniversary trip to the Continent, and Stephen Garrett was in Europe as well, covering the Cannes Film Festival like he has done every year since before he can remember. This year, Iranian dissident filmmaker Jafar Panahi won the Palme D'Or for his film 'It Was Just An Accident,' the sixth straight year a film distributed by Neon has taken the prize. Neal and Stephen discuss that and then Stephen does a speedy run-through of the festival, covering all the awards winners and other significant films, including the new Spike Lee movie, which he gets in just under the wire as Neal attempts to close out the segment. Nathan Fielder delivered a brilliant six episodes of television with Season 2 of The Rehearsal, which ostensibly is about airplane safety, and is about airplane safety, but is also about so much more. Omar Gallaga appears to talk with Neal about The Rehearsal's narrative sleight-of-hand, which they both love. But there's a curious phenomenon: It's mostly men who jibe with Nathan Fielder's comedy. Neal and Omar, or actors playing them, try to break down this curious situation. In the tradition of Nathan Fielder, they both fail and succeed at the same time. Stephen Garrett is back, to discuss Mission: Impossible: The Final Reckoning, which he saw at Cannes and which Neal saw at his usual spot, the Alamo Drafthouse Lakeline in Austin. Either way, it's a bombastic edition of the long-running action franchise. Both Neal and Stephen loved the extended submarine action sequence in the middle, and enjoyed a taste of the biplane action scene toward the end, but found the overwrought dialogue tiring, the characters thin at best, and some of the plot laughably stupid. It's about as subtle as a hammer to the face or a nuclear bomb that must be defused in five minutes. Did we mention that the podcast is back? Enjoy!

    41 min

  3. 05/07/2025

    BFG Podcast #198: 'Thunderbolts,' 'The Four Seasons,' and Tariff Threats Hit Hollywood

    Hollywood in crisis! When is Hollywood not in crisis? This week on the podcast, the tariffs have come home to roost in Tinseltown. Neal Pollack hosts Richard Rushfield of The Ankler to discuss what in the hell is going on. Why couldn't Jon Voight stop Trump from issuing tariff threats? Is Trump serious? Maybe it's good to have a President who's actually engaging in issues that threaten the movie industry. Maybe he wants to help? No one has any idea what's happening, which makes it all suspenseful and vaguely fun, like a good studio genre picture. Richard empties what's left of his brain and he and Neal try to break down the issues. There are no issues with 'Thunderbolts,' a current hit from that underdog Marvel Studios. Richard went to the world premiere in Los Angeles, and, frankly, he found the buffet kind of wanting. I mean, it tasted good, but was maybe a little skimpy. You could say the same about Thunderbolts, which, let's face it, is trying to sell us some C-list heroes as A-list heroes and it's hard to tell if people are going to bite permanently or not. There's so much Bob, so little Spider-Man. And that buffet? My lord. Matthew Ehrlich makes a late-episode appearance to absolutely ravage Tina Fey's remake of a very dated Alan Alda movie called 'The Four Seasons.' Except that this isn't a movie. It's a four-hour miniseries on Netflix. No one cares about these three couples who are somehow supposed to be able to afford to take four luxury vacations a year. Together. Matthew wonders why the gay couple, half of whom is Colman Domingo, would even consider going on holiday with such boring straight people. Once, maybe, because they went to Vassar together. But four times? In a year? What are we doing here, people. Everyone loved Alan Alda back in the day, but Matthew broaches the unthinkable: That maybe Tina Fey has peaked. We will rue such words, I'm sure. Enjoy the podcast!

    37 min

  4. 04/30/2025

    BFG Podcast #197: 'Andor' Season 2, 'The Accountant 2,' 'The Shrouds,' and a Resurgent Box Office

    In the past on this podcast, host Neal Pollack and guest Scott Gold have occasionally steered listeners awry, we'll admit it. After watching the first couple episodes of genre shows like The Acolyte or Daredevil: Born Again, they've encouraged people to watch the shows, and then had to sit back and cringe for weeks as the shows not only failed to stick the landing, but flopped entirely. With pretty good confidence, we can say that's not going to be the case with Season 2 of 'Andor,' which will surely be one of the best TV shows of the year when all is said and done. While it may sometimes be a little too "grownup" for its own good, 'Andor' is still thrilling and intelligent entertainment, a Star Wars not really for kids, with great action scenes, a skilled cast, nuanced writing, and gorgeous costumes. It's about the best you could hope for out of a TV show, particularly a Star Wars one. Neal and Scott feel no shame. Stephen Garrett pops into the pod-dome to discuss the surprisingly popular 'The Accountant 2,' which Stephen didn't really like much. It takes a brotastic genre turn away from the moody character piece that was the first 'Accountant' movie several years ago. While Stephen admires it when a sequel breaks so far from the original source material, he found this one just plain goofy. Unable to comment on 'The Shrouds' from David Cronenberg because of a professional conflict of interest, Stephen mostly lets Neal have at this film, which is weird and awkward and stiff and throws away cool ideas and amazing future tech on a weird conspiracy plotline about sinister Chinese doctors helping the CCP throw a surveillance blanket over the entire world--by using dead bodies. It's not a bad conceit for the movie, but there's lots of telling, not showing. Stephen breaks character to say he thinks The Shrouds is a profound meditation on mortality and grief. That's true, but it buries its depth beneath six feet of plot exposition. Meanwhile, Neal and Stephen are celebrating, because the box-office is through the roof. It's a glorious time to go to the movies, and to be a movie fan. At last, movies are back. We never lost faith at the BFG podcast. Just please keep your devices silent and out of sight, and no talking unless you're at a special screening of A Minecraft Movie. Enjoy the show!

    41 min

  5. 04/23/2025

    BFG Podcast #196: 'Sinners' and 'Black Mirror' Season 7

    No half-measures on the podcast this week as we cover some of the year's best content. On the movie side, we talk about 'Sinners,' Ryan Coogler's mind-blowing 1930s historical Delta blues movie–with vampires. Stephen Garrett hadn't even heard of this movie until about two weeks ago, and it was a five-star shocker for him. Neal Pollack, equally skeptical, equally and totally blown away. Coogler delivers a show-stopping musical number at the movie's midpoint, at which point a ton of vampire mayhem sets in and completely transforms the narrative. But it's testimony to how amazing Sinners is that the movie is perfectly entertaining even before the vampires take over. And then, once they do, it's as thrilling a horror movie as you'll ever see. Michael B. Jordan gives a career-defining performance as the twins at the center of the narrative. Hallee Steinfeld absolutely steams off the screen as a femme fatale for the ages. Jack O'Connell is one of the most sinister and compelling movie villains that we've seen in a long time, and Delroy Lindo lands a sure Oscar nomination as an old Delta bluesman who's comic relief, except when he's not. This is one of the best American movies in a long while, and it will be certain to be a huge contender for an awards season that doesn't start for another nine months. Sinners gets the BFG podcast's highest recommendation. Also heavily in the plus column, though maybe not quite as heavily, is the new season of Black Mirror. Omar Gallaga swoops into the pod dome to talk to Neal about the seventh season of Charlie Brooker's tech dystopia sci-fi anthology show. By this point we're all comfortable enough with Black Mirror's twists and tropes that they've ceased to be shocking, but there are few things on TV as satisfying as a well-executed Black Mirror episode. And this season is well-executed even by Black Mirror standards. Omar thinks that some of them run a bit long, but there are still plenty of twists and and thought-provoking ideas about tech, as well as some dark laughs and plenty of Easter eggs for true fans. It's a great week to be a fan of pop culture, and to listen to the BFG Podcast!

    39 min

  6. 04/17/2025

    BFG Podcast #195: The State of American Moviegoing and 'Drop' (Unrelated)

    On this week's BFG Podcast, we welcome in our friend Richard Rushfield, who takes time away from his deli-going schedule from time to time to stop by to talk to host Neal Pollack about issues and trends in Hollywood. Richard is recently back from Cinemcon, the annual Las Vegas convention for theater owners, who always have one question: "Does your movie star Dwayne Johnson, or does it star Ryan Reynolds?" Headier artistic questions don't concern them. For the first time in many years, Richard says, major franchises had no representation at Cinema Con. There was no Fast and Furious movie to tout. Even superhero offerings seemed kind of muted. The idea of a 90-day theatrical window went out the, well, window during COVID, and now they're trying to claw back a 45-day theatrical window. That seems highly unlikely. Finally, the conversation turns to what all of America has been waiting to hear about: Richard Rushfield's sleep apnea. It's a major problem for, we assume, his wife, but also for theatergoers around him when he takes his traditional nap an hour into a turkey. Neal and Richard try to find a workaround. BFG has also given near round-the-clock coverage of 'Drop,' an unserious thriller about cell phone misuse and bad dates that has been bombing at the box office since it released two years ago. Pablo Gallaga joins Neal to talk about 'Drop,' as the two of them continue to try to sell the public on the fact that this is the genre of the moment, the blood-soaked violence picture with a bit of cheeky comedy. We will write retrospectives about this genre, if not songs. Drop is pretty bad, they both agree, and it also accelerates a trend in modern pictures of extreme violence against women played as entertainment. How many females slammed into coffee tables do we really need to see? These are the important questions we ask at the BFG Podcast. Enjoy the show!

    37 min

  7. 04/09/2025

    BFG Podcast #194: 'A Minecraft Movie,' Museum Budget Cuts, and Remembering Val Kilmer

    BFG film critic Lani Gonzalez saw 'A Minecraft Movie' at 4 PM on a Friday with her kids, and it wasn't one of the more raucous Minecraft screenings. But it definitely doesn't surprise her that the movie made a tremendous amount of money. Minecraft is the most popular game in the world right now. "The youth of America and the world are bringing energy to the theater," she tells Neal Pollack on this week's podcast. "It gives me hope," Neal says. That said, Lani tells Neal, it was not the best possible movie they could have made, despite Jack Black's tremendous energy. Strangely, Jared Hess, who also made Napoleon Dynamite, directed A Minecraft Movie. What an unusual culture phenomenon. Meanwhile, in the real world, American museums are facing tremendous budget cuts from the Trump Administration. Sharyn Vane joins Neal to talk about this disturbing trend, and highlights the struggles of a basically apolitical children's museum in Madison, Wisconsin, which, like so many other people and institutions, is finding itself caught up in the winds of massive political change. It may not be as dire as we think, or it might be more dire. Val Kilmer died last week at age 65, and Stephen Garrett joins Neal to talk about the work and legacy of one of our more eccentric and talented screen actors. Neal, as is his tendency, pretty much just talks about Top Secret! the entire time, but Stephen broadens the scope a bit and discussions Kilmer's unique filmography and his life as a truly strange and beautiful man of California. RIP Val Kilmer, the world will miss and remember you. This episode is pure BFG: cinematic history, a little politics, a little light pop culture. If you listened to this show, you'd understand everything that's going on. So listen! Thank you very much.

    41 min

  8. 04/02/2025

    BFG Podcast #193: 'The Studio,' 'Death of A Unicorn,' and Bill Burr

    TV, movies, and politics get the full BFG Podcast treatment this week. First up, Omar Gallaga stops by the podcast dome to talk with Neal Pollack about 'The Studio,' Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg's terrific Apple+ satire about Hollywood and the movie business. Neal calls it "the best constructed TV comedy since Veep.' Omar compares this "ongoing panic attack" to The Larry Sanders Show and Curb Your Enthusiasm. It's a fine lineage, and it features the best Martin Scorsese cameo you'll ever see. Omar points out how "cinematic" the show is, and it's hard to disagree. This is peak streaming. What will the 'Kool-Aid Movie' look like. Death of a Unicorn does not reach peak cinema. Stephen Garrett pretty much hated this horror comedy about, well, killer unicorns. Neal saw Death of a Unicorn at South By Southwest, whose audience responded to it as though they were seeing Ghostbusters for the first time. Well, this is not Ghostbusters. It is Death of a Unicorn, and it is a huge bomb. Stephen found himself sympathizing with the so-called "villains". Sometimes you have to kill a unicorn, he says. Neal is a little less heartless. He just doesn't much like Jenna Ortega. Death of a A Unicorn is a footnote. A unicorn-shaped footnote. Bill Burr is on a tear lately, boosting the legend of accused healthcare CEO murderer Luigi Mangione, giving the business to Elon Musk, and generally excoriating billionaires even though he himself is quite wealthy. Bobby Hilliard is all about Bill Burr. He calls him the heir to George Carlin. Whereas Neal thinks that though Burr is a top-end comedian, he also thinks that Luigi is a murderer. Therein lies the debate. Bobby is an avowed socialist. Neal is an avowed not socialist. Bill Burr and his magic helicopter are getting rich all the way to the banking app, and on the way back, too. Enjoy the show!

    42 min
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About

Everyone’s favorite literature and pop culture site is now a podcast. Entertaining, enlightening chat about books, film, streaming TV, and more with Neal Pollack, editor of Book and Film Globe and its top writers. Pollack is the author of ten semi-bestselling books of fiction and nonfiction, including Jewball, Never Mind the Pollacks, Downward-Facing Death, and the memoirs Alternadad and Pothead: My Life as a Marijuana Addict in the Age of Legal Weed.

Information

  • Creator
    Book and Film Globe
  • Years Active
    2021 - 2025
  • Episodes
    124
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Sea of Reeds Media
  • Show Website
    Book and Film Globe Podcast