Blank Check with Griffin & David

This week, Griffin and David discuss M. Night’s first ever R rated film, 2008’s The Happening. But is wind scary? Are any of the actors convincing they haven’t completely checked out? Why am I talking to a plastic plant? Together, #TheTwoFriends examine 9/11 imagery, why Kung Fu Panda is a better movie, impressions of nerds, and why Shyamalan calling this the “best B-movie you will ever see” is preposterous. Plus, the Departed sequel scoops and not seeing Hamilton. Join our Patreon for franchise commentaries and bonus episodes. Follow us @blankcheckpod on Instagram, Threads, Facebook and X! 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

14 Mar 20161h 45min

Richard Lawson (Vanity Fair) joins Griffin and David to examine 2006’s egotistical bedtime martyr tale, Lady in the Water. Is M. Night trying to say something subtly about his film’s critics? Why is the lady never seen in the water? How is this a movie? Seriously. Together, the BC crew examines Giamatti’s stuttering, the cookbook misdirect payoff, the Disney controversy, and explore deep Lorax cuts. Plus, new segment the Burger Report, and the return of 'What If Al Pacino Was In This?' Join our Patreon for franchise commentaries and bonus episodes. Follow us @blankcheckpod on Instagram, Threads, Facebook and X! 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

7 Mar 20161h 51min

David Ehrlich (Rolling Stone) joins Griffin and David this week for an in-depth analysis of 2004’s isolationist thriller, The Village. Why was this film so universally panned by critics and audiences? What was Adrien Brody thinking to sign up for this role after winning an Academy Award? Was this the the twist that finally did Shyamalan in or was his reputation already tarnished? Together, the gang examines the color that will remained unnamed, going “simple jack”, a popular website in the early oughts called The Smoking Gun and why for the love of all that is holy does Night keep casting himself?! Join our Patreon for franchise commentaries and bonus episodes. Follow us @blankcheckpod on Instagram, Threads, Facebook and X! 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

29 Feb 20161h 44min

On this week’s special episode, Griffin and David joined by guest, Joe Reid (The Decider), present their personal nominations for the upcoming 88th Academy Awards. This roundtable discussion looks to all the major categories and offers engaging criticism, as well as, references deep cut cinema from 2015 you may have missed. With the “Blankies”, some winners are picked, Oscar snubs deservingly defended, but as always most of the personal grudges continue. Also, Griffin reads a listener submitted Star Wars/Blank Check crossover fan fiction titled: “Fisto and the Hoz” and Producer Ben offers up some of his own original categories. And fear not, for the twists will continue next week on Pod Night Shyamacast with episode five: The Village! Music selection: “Love Wins” by Lee Rosevere licensed under Creative Commons: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Join our Patreon for franchise commentaries and bonus episodes. Follow us @blankcheckpod on Instagram, Threads, Facebook and X! 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

22 Feb 20161h 53min

This week’s guests on the Shyamacast are ‘real life lovers’ Murf Meyer (The Chris Gethard Show) and Diana Kolsky (Above Average), hosts in their own right of Ménage à Trois Radio, also on the UCB Comedy podcast network! And for Blank Check’s ongoing investigative mini-series of Shyamalan’s films, together with #thetwofriends they discuss 2002’s faith biased, alien invasion movie, Signs. Was it fate that it was poorly received? Was Shyamalan smart in casting himself for a role that required some real acting? How does Mel Gibson’s filmography hold up to the numerous terrible things he been quoted in public saying? Well, Blankies rejoice because this in-depth analysis leaves no glasses half empty nor half full! Also, Griffin professes his love for Chicken Run numerous times, Diana receives 7 comedy points and Murf recalls a summer of Austin Powers references. Join our Patreon for franchise commentaries and bonus episodes. Follow us @blankcheckpod on Instagram, Threads, Facebook and X! 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

15 Feb 20161h 45min

Matt Patches (Thrillist, Grantland) joins Griffin and David this week to discuss Shyamalan’s fourth feature, Unbreakable. This sad and muted superhero film where mostly nothing happens was seen by many critics and fans as a “sophomore slump” when released in 2000. But what are some of it’s redeeming qualities? How does it stand out among the Marvel superhero movie craze in the years that followed? Oh and is there a twist you ask? Well listen along as the gang unpacks the making and reception of Unbreakable, together examine the stylistic choices incorporating the visual language of comic books, begin to notice a pattern of recurring themes related to loveless marriages and disturbed children, and try to shake the dead eyes of Spencer Treat Clark. Join our Patreon for franchise commentaries and bonus episodes. Follow us @blankcheckpod on Instagram, Threads, Facebook and X! 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

8 Feb 20161h 43min

Joining Griffin and David on this week’s episode is special guest Katey Rich (Vanity Fair) to help examine Shyamalan’s 1999 breakout, career defining film: The Sixth Sense. How did this unknown writer/director convince Disney to pay him 3 million dollars for the script with the clause to direct? What is the significance of red in the movie? How did this same filmmaker go on to make Lady in the Water? Are there any SIGNS of what is to come!? Together, they discuss ghost logic, actor Toni Collette’s amazing performance, munchausen by proxy, the climate in cinema during 1999 and so much more! Plus, the gang nerds out on box office stats, Griffin revisits working with Trevor Moore on ‘Butt Whistle’ and Producer Ben presents his own original endings. Join our Patreon for franchise commentaries and bonus episodes. Follow us @blankcheckpod on Instagram, Threads, Facebook and X! 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

1 Feb 20161h 46min

In the debut episode of the newly rebranded ‘Blank Check’, Griffin and David look to another director of supersized ego and skill: M. Night Shyamalan. Similar to their investigation of George Lucas’ Star Wars, the hosts aim to discover where exactly in Shyamalan’s filmography did this artist lose touch with his unique vision and become the “twist” guy? Starting with 1992’s Praying with Anger (set in India and filmed while he was still a student at NYU), as well as, his first major-motion picture Wide Awake, join the hosts as they try to understand how these early attempts would affect his future films and the recurring themes Shyamalan would continue to explore. Join our Patreon for franchise commentaries and bonus episodes. Follow us @blankcheckpod on Instagram, Threads, Facebook and X! 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

26 Jan 20161h 31min