The Next Reel Film Podcast

TruStory FM

4.7 (88)
Film Reviews
Updated Weekly

A show about movies and how they connect. We love movies. We’ve been talking about them, one movie a week, since 2011. It’s a lot of movies, that’s true, but we’re passionate about origins and performance, directors and actors, themes and genres, and so much more. So join the community, and let’s hear about your favorite movies, too. When the movie ends, our conversation begins.

2d ago

Sorry to Bother You

A telemarketer discovers a voice that gets him everything he wants—and everyone else pays for it. "Sorry to Bother You" closes out The Next Reel's Platformed Lives series, from writer-director Boots Riley. LaKeith Stanfield stars as telemarketer Cassius "Cash" Green, with Tessa Thompson as his girlfriend Detroit and Armie Hammer as the CEO who takes a sudden interest in Cash's rise. Pete and Andy dig into the film's overdubbed "white voice" device and how far the movie's satire stretches before it works against itself, then weigh it against the two entries that came before it in the series, landing on real disagreement about how well it all holds together. We have a great time talking about it, so check it out then tune in—The Next Reel on TruStory FM, when the movie ends, our conversation begins! 🎥 Watch Our Full Conversation on YouTube Full show notes and links 🔓 The movie ends. The conversation goes further. Become a member.🎧 Members get this episode early and ad-free in their private feed—plus every show in The Next Reel family. The Next Reel Family of Film Shows: Cinema Scope: Bridging Genres, Subgenres, and Movements | The Film Board | Movies We Like | The Next Reel | Sitting in the DarkConnect With Us: Web | Letterboxd | Flickchart | Instagram | Bluesky | YouTube | DiscordYour Hosts: Andy | PeteMerch Store | Audible
Aug 13

Nightcrawler

Some people fall into the worst version of themselves. Lou Bloom arrives already there. Dan Gilroy's 2014 neo-noir thriller follows a petty thief who discovers freelance crime videography and finds in it the perfect profession—one that rewards exactly the qualities that make him dangerous. Jake Gyllenhaal's performance is a career landmark, and the film around it is darkly, uncomfortably funny in ways that sneak up on you. Pete Wright and Andy Nelson dig into what makes Nightcrawler tick as both a media critique and a character study—why the self-help language Lou speaks is terrifying precisely because it works, how Rene Russo's Nina gets pulled into Lou's orbit, and where this sits in the Platformed Lives series alongside The Truman Show. Members get the full post-show conversation and always know what to listen to next. Join the conversation. Full episode resources and transcript. Watch on YouTube. The Next Reel Family of Film Shows: Cinema Scope: Bridging Genres, Subgenres, and Movements | The Film Board | Movies We Like | The Next Reel | Sitting in the DarkConnect With Us: Web | Letterboxd | Flickchart | Instagram | Bluesky | YouTube | DiscordYour Hosts: Andy | PeteMerch Store | Audible
Aug 6

The Truman Show

One man's entire life has been broadcast to the world without his consent. "The Truman Show" opens a new Next Reel series called Platformed Lives, directed by Peter Weir and starring Jim Carrey as Truman Burbank, with Ed Harris as the show's creator and Laura Linney as his on-screen wife. Small cracks start showing in the world around him, and he can't look away. Pete and Andy dig into how the film anticipates reality TV and social media surveillance decades early, and trace the wild path the screenplay took before Weir signed on to direct. It's a perfect launch for a series built around the idea of consent. We have a great time talking about it, so check it out then tune in—The Next Reel on TruStory FM, when the movie ends, our conversation begins! 🎥 Watch Our Full Conversation on YouTube 📋 Full show notes and resources 🔒 This episode includes member-only bonus content. The movie ends. The conversation goes further—and there's more of it in the member feed. Become a member. 🎧 Members get this episode early and ad-free in their private feed—plus every show in The Next Reel family. The Next Reel Family of Film Shows: Cinema Scope: Bridging Genres, Subgenres, and Movements | The Film Board | Movies We Like | The Next Reel | Sitting in the DarkConnect With Us: Web | Letterboxd | Flickchart | Instagram | Bluesky | YouTube | DiscordYour Hosts: Andy | PeteMerch Store | Audible
Jul 2

Talk to Me

What happens when grief turns into a game nobody can stop playing? "Talk to Me" is the 2022 feature debut from brothers Danny and Michael Philippou, starring Sophie Wilde as a teenager pulled into a supernatural ritual that spirals into addiction and tragedy, alongside Joe Bird and Alexandra Jensen. Pete and Andy dig into the film's ambiguous ending and the recurring kangaroo image that ties directly into its themes of grief and inaction. It's a sharp, unsettling watch, and one that returns to their Horror Debuts series for a strong one-off. We have a great time talking about it, so check it out then tune in—The Next Reel on TruStory FM, when the movie ends, our conversation begins! 🔓 The movie ends. The conversation goes further. Become a member. 🎧 Members get this episode early and ad-free in their private feed—plus every show in The Next Reel family. Watch on YouTube here. Find full episode resources and transcript here. The Next Reel Family of Film Shows: Cinema Scope: Bridging Genres, Subgenres, and Movements | The Film Board | Movies We Like | The Next Reel | Sitting in the DarkConnect With Us: Web | Letterboxd | Flickchart | Instagram | Bluesky | YouTube | DiscordYour Hosts: Andy | PeteMerch Store | Audible
Jun 25

Gun Crazy

"Gun Crazy," the 1950 film noir from director Joseph H. Lewis, stars John Dall as Bart Tare—a man obsessed with guns since childhood who draws the line at killing—and Peggy Cummins as Annie Laurie Starr, a carnival sharpshooter with no such reservations. Some obsessions ignite the moment two people look at each other, and the life of crime they fall into feels less like a choice than a collision they were always heading toward. Pete and Andy dig into what makes this Couples on the Run entry so distinctly noir—the fatalism, the femme fatale who craves the act of crime itself rather than the money, and the filmmaking Lewis pulls off on a shoestring budget. The bank robbery oner alone is worth the conversation. We have a great time talking about it, so check it out then tune in—The Next Reel on TruStory FM, when the movie ends, our conversation begins! 🎥 Watch Our Full Conversation on YouTube 🎬 Watch & Discover Watch the Film: Apple TV | Amazon | Letterboxd Original Theatrical Trailer If You Liked This Conversation, Try These from The Next Reel Family: Couples on the Run — the full series Film Noir — The Next Reel — more from Andy and Pete in the genre Film Noir: Crime and the Ordinary Man — Cinema Scope — a companion conversation on the genre 🔓 The movie ends. The conversation goes further. Become a member.🎧 Members get this episode early and ad-free in their private feed—plus every show in The Next Reel family. The Next Reel Family of Film Shows: Cinema Scope: Bridging Genres, Subgenres, and Movements | The Film Board | Movies We Like | The Next Reel | Sitting in the DarkConnect With Us: Web | Letterboxd | Flickchart | Instagram | Bluesky | YouTube | DiscordYour Hosts: Andy | PeteMerch Store | Audible
Jun 18

Shadow

Zhang Yimou's 2018 wuxia epic "Shadow" achieves its ink wash painting look in-camera: every set and costume designed in black, white, and grey, every outdoor scene filmed on rainy days to drain remaining color from the environment. At the center is a secret double—a man groomed since childhood to stand in for the ailing commander he resembles, now navigating palace intrigue, poisoned loyalties, and a duel that could take back a city. Andy Nelson and Pete Wright dig into the film's yin-yang philosophy—how the shadow figure, the feminine fighting technique, and even the warlord's name all map onto the same duality—alongside the spectacular bladed umbrella weapons, the two female characters whose parallel arcs quietly hold the story together, and where "Shadow" lands in Zhang Yimou's career after his Hollywood detour with "The Great Wall." Both hosts have a great time with it. 🔓 The movie ends. The conversation goes further. Become a member. Watch this episode on YouTube. Find the full episode resources and transcript here. The Next Reel Family of Film Shows: Cinema Scope: Bridging Genres, Subgenres, and Movements | The Film Board | Movies We Like | The Next Reel | Sitting in the DarkConnect With Us: Web | Letterboxd | Flickchart | Instagram | Bluesky | YouTube | DiscordYour Hosts: Andy | PeteMerch Store | Audible
Jun 11

House of Flying Daggers

Love cuts through every mission, every loyalty, and every survival plan in House of Flying Daggers. Zhang Yimou's 2004 wuxia, part of The Next Reel's Zhang Yimou series, stars Takeshi Kaneshiro as a government officer who goes undercover to infiltrate a rebel group, Zhang Ziyi as Mei, the dancer he falls for, and Andy Lau as the officer who sent him in. Pete and Andy dig into the tension between what the film promises and what Yimou actually delivers—a love triangle that swallows the political conflict whole. They examine the film's saturated cinematography and standout fight sequences, and take an honest look at how the men pursue Mei. We have a great time talking about it, so check it out then tune in—The Next Reel on TruStory FM, when the movie ends, our conversation begins! 🎥 Watch on YouTube Watch & Discover Watch the Film: Apple TV | Amazon | Letterboxd | Original Theatrical Trailer If You Liked This Conversation, Try These from the Next Reel Family: The Zhang Yimou Series on The Next Reel—the full arc of our conversations about Yimou's career Wuxia Unleashed – Cinema Scope—Leon Hunt and Chris Hamm on the martial arts tradition this film sits inside Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon – The Next Reel—part of our Foreign Language Films Nominated for Best Picture series Full episode resources here. 🔓 The movie ends. The conversation goes further. Become a member. 🎧 Members get this episode early and ad-free in their private feed—plus every show in The Next Reel family. The Next Reel Family of Film Shows: Cinema Scope: Bridging Genres, Subgenres, and Movements | The Film Board | Movies We Like | The Next Reel | Sitting in the DarkConnect With Us: Web | Letterboxd | Flickchart | Instagram | Bluesky | YouTube | DiscordYour Hosts: Andy | PeteMerch Store | Audible
Jun 4

To Live

Zhang Yimou's "To Live" is the most personal film he ever made—a 1994 historical epic that strips away his signature visual spectacle to follow one Chinese family across four decades of civil war, forced labor campaigns, and cultural upheaval. Ge You plays Xu Fugui, a gambler whose recklessness costs his family everything; Gong Li plays Jiazhen, his wife, whose capacity for endurance and eventual forgiveness gives the film its moral center; and Jiang Wu is Wan Erxi, their son-in-law, who arrives as a stranger and becomes the warmth the story needs. Pete Wright and Andy Nelson track the film's shadow puppets as an emotional through-line, dig into the novel versus film question, and wrestle with why this particular Zhang Yimou—the quietest, most naturalistic one—might be the best one. The conversation covers Ge You's transformation from comic actor to Cannes standout, why Andy reads Jiazhen rather than Fugui as the film's true change character, the food motif threading through tragedy after tragedy, and why the story of how this film came to be banned is more procedural than political. Watch our full conversation on YouTube. Full episode resources—including streaming links, the Yu Hua novel, and the full transcript—are available here. 🔒 This episode includes member-only bonus content. The movie ends. The conversation goes further—and there's more of it in the member feed. Become a member. 🎧 Members get this episode early and ad-free in their private feed—plus every show in The Next Reel family. The Next Reel Family of Film Shows: Cinema Scope: Bridging Genres, Subgenres, and Movements | The Film Board | Movies We Like | The Next Reel | Sitting in the DarkConnect With Us: Web | Letterboxd | Flickchart | Instagram | Bluesky | YouTube | DiscordYour Hosts: Andy | PeteMerch Store | Audible

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Trailer

Welcome to The Next Reel!

Are you ready for a thrilling cinematic adventure? Welcome to The Next Reel Film Podcast, where movie lovers unite! For over a decade, we've been your trusted guides, diving deep into the captivating world of film. From timeless classics to groundbreaking new releases and hidden gems, we bring you engaging and hilarious conversations that go beyond the average movie review.We explore the fascinating stories behind the scenes, from production challenges to box office triumphs and mind-blowing facts. At The Next Reel, we believe every movie has valuable lessons to offer, whether it's an Oscar winner, a cult classic, or even a film that didn't quite stick the landing. We're here to unpack the craft of filmmaking, the depths of the human experience, and the world we live in, all through the lens of the movies we love.Join us on this cinematic odyssey! With hundreds of episodes in our archive, you'll never run out of captivating conversations to fuel your movie obsession. Subscribe now and get ready to see movies in a whole new light. The Next Reel. When the movie ends, our conversation begins.

4.7

out of 5

88 Ratings

10/10

08/05/2024

Dark Soups

10/10 one of the best podcasts I’ve listened to in a while
Best film podcast

07/27/2021

cdubbub

I had lost interest in films a few years ago, and Pete and Andy single handedly (double handedly?) revived that love. Going through their library of shows, I have watched films I never would have checked out otherwise. Plus there's the added treat to hear their discourse on films I know backward and forward (even if we don't always agree). If you love film, check this one out!
Best Film Podcast

02/16/2021

Jerry5967

I love this program. They talk about movies I’m actually interested in hearing people talk about. So many episodes on my list.
Fun and enlightening

05/10/2020

HHHH2023

This is my favorite podcast which brings a whole new depth and perspective to the art of movie making, with a wonderful sense of humor throughout. It is so good that I bought the T-shirt.

A show about movies and how they connect. We love movies. We’ve been talking about them, one movie a week, since 2011. It’s a lot of movies, that’s true, but we’re passionate about origins and performance, directors and actors, themes and genres, and so much more. So join the community, and let’s hear about your favorite movies, too. When the movie ends, our conversation begins.