Certified Gervais Podcast

On this episode of the Certified Gervais Podcast, we're watching Vanishing Point (1971), Richard C. Sarafian's road movie about Kowalski, a car delivery driver racing a white Dodge Challenger from Denver to San Francisco with the police on his tail. Is it a forgotten masterpiece or an overrated cult classic?

We share our first reactions and talk about the film's reputation, Kowalski's defiance and the journey he takes. We also give our theory about why he drives into the bulldozer at the end. Then we cover the film's legacy, who it was made for, whether the slow pacing works and what we make of the ambiguous ending, before closing with our final thoughts.

Chapters:
00:42 Welcome to the Vanishing Point Review
01:43 Vanishing Point's Reputation and Kowalski's Defiance
06:50 Kowalski's Journey and the Bulldozer Crash
14:52 Vanishing Point's Legacy, Audience, and Pacing
22:33 The Ambiguous Ending and Vanishing Point's Personal Legacy
28:43 Final Thoughts and Sign-off

On this episode of the Certified Gervais Podcast, we go behind the scenes of indie horror with a filmmaker who worked on the Friday the 13th fan films. We start with how the tense tent kill that opens Friday the 13th Vengeance came together. Then we get into the morgue scene and its oversized prop, how Jason Brooks ended up playing Louis, and Steve Dash's final time filming and the legacy he left. We also talk about a recovered fan-film scene, how Diana Prince joined Mythos, and how the Bloodlines cast was put together. On the practical side, we cover building convincing kills on a low budget and staging chaotic kill scenes that keep the tension up. Finally, we hear what it's like to play Jason, including getting hurt on set and actually scaring people, before wrapping up with upcoming projects and the state of independent film.

On this episode of the Certified Gervais Podcast, we go back to Haddonfield to break down John Carpenter's Halloween. We look at the film's slow-build suspense and Michael Myers's patient style as The Shape. We also cover Dr. Loomis's warnings that nobody listened to, Sheriff Brackett's grief, and the town's blind spots. Then we walk through Laurie's escape and the mysteries the film never answers, including Michael's disappearance at the end. We talk about Carpenter's famous score, the sequels and the anniversary rumors, before landing on the big question: is Michael Myers still the king of horror? We close with what's next for the podcast and a few recommendations.

Our pick of horror movies that deserve more love. We start with Black Christmas, an early model for the slasher film, then move on to My Bloody Valentine and other forgotten slashers, and talk about why some groundbreaking horror films ended up overlooked. We also recommend Slumber Party Massacre, The Hills Have Eyes and more cult favorites. Alyssa shares her own picks, and we get into killer-vehicle and road-terror classics. We discuss Jeepers Creepers and whether you can separate the art from the person who made it, look at odd horror films inspired by true crime (with a detour into the Zodiac case), and finish with Friday the 13th and Romero's zombie films.

Is Friday the 13th still a horror classic, or has it lost its edge? This episode looks back at the 1980 original: why its mystery and misdirection still work, and how the Pamela Voorhees reveal pays off. We also cover the grief that drives her, the film's slasher themes and the Camp Crystal Lake setting.

Then we look at what hasn't aged well, including slow stretches, weak scenes and pacing problems, before giving a final verdict on this flawed but lasting slasher. We also settle the Friday the 13th vs. Halloween debate, talk about the Crystal Lake franchise-rights fight and what's next for Jason, and preview next week's episode.

Is The Nightmare Before Christmas a Halloween movie, a Christmas movie, or both? In this episode of Certified Gervais, we rewatch Tim Burton's stop-motion classic and settle the debate for good.

We look at how the film blends two holidays into one world, and why it feels timeless enough that people come back to it year after year. We also get into Jack Skellington's loneliness and identity crisis, and ask whether his excitement makes him lovable or just reckless. From there we cover the film's message about staying true to yourself, whether it still holds up or it's mostly nostalgia, the standout characters, and the love story between Jack and Sally. Plus: which character would be the worst to meet in real life?

Stick around for our final verdict, a preview of the next episode and where to follow the show.

On this episode of Certified or Denied, we swap the songs we can't stop playing — even when we probably should. We trade favorite artists (Chuck Berry, Toby Keith, the Beach Boys), confess our guiltiest pleasures, and cue up the tracks that hit us right in the feels. Then it's windows-down road-trip anthems, work-frustration bangers, and throwback songs that instantly return us to childhood. We close with a rapid-fire round on Black artists we love, songs discovered through movies, embarrassing favorites, and the tracks that remind us of the people who matter most.