Send a text

 In this episode, first time guest Derek Schlender ("Schlender 5 Productions") joins the podcast. He brings along the movie Dragonheart. Marty and Clif give Derek the movie Rollerball to watch.

Season 4 kicks off with a guest, and a double feature that couldn’t be more different.

Marty and Clif are joined by Derek Schlender to break down two films connected by spectacle, ambition, and wildly different results: Dragonheart (1996) and Rollerball (1975).

First up is Dragonheart. Rob Cohen’s mid-’90s fantasy epic starring Dennis Quaid and featuring Sean Connery as the voice of Draco, the last dragon. The crew digs into peak-’90s CGI, bad medieval wigs and whether nostalgia is the only thing keeping this cult fantasy afloat. Is it a charming kid’s adventure? A tonal mess? A necessary stepping stone between Jurassic Park and Lord of the Rings? All of the above?

Then it’s on to Norman Jewison’s Rollerball (1975), a dystopian sports thriller about corporate control, violent spectacle, and individualism crushed under the system. What starts as futuristic world-building turns into a surprisingly talky meditation on power, celebrity, and manufactured entertainment.

 #TalkingPondo #Dragonheart #Rollerball #FilmPodcast #90sMovies #CultCinema #FantasyFilm #DystopianFilm 

End of show plug by Marty

Support the show

Find our films here:

The Love Song of William H Shaw

Revenge of Zoe

Writing Fren-Zee

Making Pondo on Facebook

X (formerly Twitter):
@MakingPondo

Instagram

Making Pondo on Letterboxd:
Season One

Season Two

Season Three

Season Four

Theme Song "The Rain" by Russ Pace

Photos by Geoffrey Notkin

Send a text

 In this episode, Marty gives Clif the movie Withnail and I to watch and Clif gives Marty the movie The Commitments to watch. 

Season 3 wraps with a British/Irish cult double feature.

First up is Withnail and I (1987) - Bruce Robinson’s chaotic, quotable portrait of two struggling actors at the tail end of the ’60s. Marty and Clif explore its “British Fear and Loathing” energy, cult status, and surprising influence on American indie cinema.

Then it’s The Commitments (1991) - Alan Parker’s story of working-class Dubliners forming a soul band with big dreams and fragile egos. What starts as a scrappy music underdog story becomes something sharper: a brutally honest look at ambition, creative tension, and why great bands fall apart.

Along the way, they talk British cult film, music realism, indie influence, creative partnerships, and closing out a season that covered 72 films in nine months.

Season 4 starts next week.

#TalkingPondo #WithnailAndI #TheCommitments #SeasonFinale #FilmPodcast #CultCinema #BritishFilm #IrishCinema #IndieFilm #AlanParker 

End of show plug by Marty

Support the show

Find our films here:

The Love Song of William H Shaw

Revenge of Zoe

Writing Fren-Zee

Making Pondo on Facebook

X (formerly Twitter):
@MakingPondo

Instagram

Making Pondo on Letterboxd:
Season One

Season Two

Season Three

Season Four

Theme Song "The Rain" by Russ Pace

Photos by Geoffrey Notkin

Send a text

 In this episode, Marty gives Clif the movie The Border to watch and Clif gives Marty the movie The Last Detail to watch. 

This week on Talking Pondo, Marty and Clif stumble into a theme they didn’t plan but couldn’t ignore: Talking Nicholson.

The connective tissue between this double feature is Jack Nicholson, starring in two very different films from two very different eras: Hal Ashby’s The Last Detail (1973) and Tony Richardson’s The Border (1982): both centered on authority, systems, and men trapped inside them.

They start with The Last Detail, a funny, deeply melancholy road movie that finds Nicholson escorting a young sailor to an eight-year prison sentence for a petty crime. They dig into Ashby’s “fried-out” ’70s tone, lived-in performances, stark realism, and why the film’s matter-of-fact ending lingers long after the credits roll.

Then they move to The Border, an early-’80s studio film that feels both rougher and conflicted with itself. Nicholson’s morally compromised border agent drifts through corruption, half-hearted redemption, and a system designed to chew people up. Marty and Clif explore the film’s uneven tone, British director perspective, TV-movie aesthetics and the way Nicholson and Harvey Keitel elevate material that never quite comes together.

End of show plug by Marty

Support the show

Find our films here:

The Love Song of William H Shaw

Revenge of Zoe

Writing Fren-Zee

Making Pondo on Facebook

X (formerly Twitter):
@MakingPondo

Instagram

Making Pondo on Letterboxd:
Season One

Season Two

Season Three

Season Four

Theme Song "The Rain" by Russ Pace

Photos by Geoffrey Notkin

Send a text

 In this episode, first time guest Ben Apuan joins the podcast. He brings along the movie Clerks. Marty and Clif give Ben the movie Say Anything to watch.

This week on Talking Pondo, Marty and Clif are joined by Ben from Chasing the Whimsy for a deep dive into two landmark films that helped define independent cinema: Cameron Crowe’s Say Anything (1989) and Kevin Smith’s Clerks (1994).

On the surface, these movies couldn’t be more different. One is a heartfelt, romantic coming-of-age story, the other a black-and-white, foul-mouthed retail comedy. But together, they capture the shifting cultural moment between the late ’80s and early ’90s, when indie filmmakers proved you didn’t need studio polish to say something real.

The conversation digs into Clerks as a once-in-a-lifetime debut: it's handmade feel, sharp dialogue, budget-driven creativity, and the birth of the View Askewniverse. From newspaper machines and 37 infamous confessions to Jay & Silent Bob’s unlikely legacy, the crew explores why Kevin Smith’s $33,000 gamble still resonates decades later.

They also connect the dots between both films through music, tone, first-time directors, and a shared DNA of alternative cinema that celebrate authenticity over perfection.

End of show plug by Marty

Support the show

Find our films here:

The Love Song of William H Shaw

Revenge of Zoe

Writing Fren-Zee

Making Pondo on Facebook

X (formerly Twitter):
@MakingPondo

Instagram

Making Pondo on Letterboxd:
Season One

Season Two

Season Three

Season Four

Theme Song "The Rain" by Russ Pace

Photos by Geoffrey Notkin

Send a text

 In this episode, Marty gives Clif the movie Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles to watch and Clif gives Marty the movie Wind River to watch. 

This week on Talking Pondo, Clif Campbell and Marty Ketola celebrate the show’s two-year anniversary with a wildly mismatched double feature.

First up is Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1990), the surprise hit comic book movie that also happens to be the first film Clif and Marty ever reviewed together. They revisit its surprisingly dark tone, Jim Henson creature work, early appearances by future stars, and why this PG-rated movie still feels more adult than anyone remembers.

Then things turn sharply with Wind River (2017), the haunting conclusion to Taylor Sheridan’s unofficial frontier trilogy. The conversation digs into its themes of violence, justice, isolation, and why this powerful trilogy feels frustratingly unfinished.

Along the way: listener mail, Pondo origin stories, movie nostalgia, and reflections on how 1990 impacted film.

 #TalkingPondo #TMNT1990 #WindRiver #MoviePodcast #FilmDiscussion #ComicBookMovies #90sMovies #TaylorSheridan 

End of show plug by Marty

Support the show

Find our films here:

The Love Song of William H Shaw

Revenge of Zoe

Writing Fren-Zee

Making Pondo on Facebook

X (formerly Twitter):
@MakingPondo

Instagram

Making Pondo on Letterboxd:
Season One

Season Two

Season Three

Season Four

Theme Song "The Rain" by Russ Pace

Photos by Geoffrey Notkin

Send a text

 In this episode, Marty gives Clif the movie The Party Animal to watch and Clif gives Marty the movie Bad Day At Black Rock to watch. 

This week on Talking Pondo, Marty and Clif take on two films that couldn’t be more different, yet somehow define everything about the show.

First up is Bad Day at Black Rock (1955), a tight, 82-minute neo-western starring Spencer Tracy. The conversation digs into its post-WWII paranoia, small-town hostility, and why the film’s restraint and structure still feel refreshing nearly 70 years later.

Then it’s time for the main event: The Party Animal (1984), the movie that quite literally gave birth to Pondo. Marty and Clif break down the cult college comedy that shaped their sense of humor, introduced them to punk music, and inspired the name Pondo’s Children Productions. From its skit-based structure and mock-documentary style to its outrageous gags, bizarre musical numbers, and infamous dream sequence, The Party Animal is examined both lovingly and mercilessly.

#FilmPodcast #MovieDiscussion #CultClassic #80sMovies #ClassicFilm #TalkingPondo #ThePartyAnimal #BadDayAtBlackRock #CultMovies

End of show plug by Marty

Support the show

Find our films here:

The Love Song of William H Shaw

Revenge of Zoe

Writing Fren-Zee

Making Pondo on Facebook

X (formerly Twitter):
@MakingPondo

Instagram

Making Pondo on Letterboxd:
Season One

Season Two

Season Three

Season Four

Theme Song "The Rain" by Russ Pace

Photos by Geoffrey Notkin

Send a text

 In this episode, first time guest Robert Linden joins the podcast. He brings along the movie I'm Gonna Git You Sucka. Marty and Clif give Robert the movie Enter The Dragon to watch.

Join us for a high-kick double feature that pairs martial arts legends with razor-sharp parody: Enter the Dragon (1973) and I’m Gonna Git You Sucka (1988).

The episode breaks down why Enter the Dragon remains the gold standard of martial arts cinema, from Bruce Lee’s unmatched screen presence, fight choreography, and the movie’s lasting impact on action cinema.

Then the crew pivots into full satire mode with Keenan Ivory Wayans' I’m Gonna Git You Sucka, a fearless, R-rated send-up of 1970s blaxploitation. With a stacked cast including Isaac Hayes, Jim Brown, Chris Rock, John Witherspoon and more, the film is unpacked as both a loving homage and a brutally funny critique of the genre’s excesses.

#TalkingPondo,#FilmPodcast,#MoviePodcast,#FilmDiscussion,#CultMovies,#EnterTheDragon,#BruceLee,#ImGonnaGitYouSucka,#KeenenIvoryWayans,#Blaxploitation,#MartialArtsMovies,#KungFuCinema,#ActionMovies,#ComedyFilms

End of show plug by Marty

Support the show

Find our films here:

The Love Song of William H Shaw

Revenge of Zoe

Writing Fren-Zee

Making Pondo on Facebook

X (formerly Twitter):
@MakingPondo

Instagram

Making Pondo on Letterboxd:
Season One

Season Two

Season Three

Season Four

Theme Song "The Rain" by Russ Pace

Photos by Geoffrey Notkin

Send a text

 In this episode, Marty gives Clif the movie Hot Shots! to watch and Clif gives Marty the movie They Came Together to watch. In a special bonus to this episode Marty and Clif are joined by two very special guests, Kyle and Zuzu Weingart, to discuss their latest film "Cuisine de la 'Pocalypse".

First up is Hot Shots!, the slick Top Gun spoof starring Charlie Sheen. The guys revisit the Zucker–Abrahams era of rapid-fire satire, debating diminishing returns, overextended gags, and why the film played like gangbusters in 1991 but lands very differently today.

Then it's They Came Together, a rom-com parody that ambushes every romantic comedy cliché at once. Starring Paul Rudd and Amy Poehler and featuring an absurdly stacked cast, the film is discussed as a relentless, meta deconstruction of the genre and dismantles itself in real time.

Bonus Interview: Marty and Clif sit down with Cuisine de la ’Pocalypse writer/director Kyle Weingart and actress Zuzu Weingart  for a wide-ranging conversation about making an indie film at the end of the world.  The discussion covers the movie’s long development, building a creative community, casting surprising names, and balancing absurd comedy with genuine heart in a post-apocalyptic setting. 

Interview start at 59:43

Watch Cuisine de la 'Pocalypse on Tubi now!

End of show plug by Marty

Support the show

Find our films here:

The Love Song of William H Shaw

Revenge of Zoe

Writing Fren-Zee

Making Pondo on Facebook

X (formerly Twitter):
@MakingPondo

Instagram

Making Pondo on Letterboxd:
Season One

Season Two

Season Three

Season Four

Theme Song "The Rain" by Russ Pace

Photos by Geoffrey Notkin

Send a text

 In this episode, Marty gives Clif the movie The Hudsucker Proxy to watch and Clif gives Marty the movie Sunset Boulevard to watch. 

In this New Year’s special, Marty and Clif take on two classics where time, success, and self-delusion collide: The Hudsucker Proxy (1994) and Sunset Boulevard (1950).

First up is the Coen Brothers’ fast-talking corporate fairy tale The Hudsucker Proxy. Marty and Clif dive deep into the film’s cartoon logic, rapid-fire dialogue, exaggerated performances, and elaborate set pieces. Along the way, they unpack the film’s connections to Sam Raimi, Roger Deakins, Preston Sturges, Buster Keaton, and the Coens’ evolving style.

Then it’s time for a much darker New Year’s turn with Billy Wilder’s Sunset Boulevard. Marty and Clif discuss Gloria Swanson’s iconic performance as Norma Desmond, William Holden’s doomed narrator, and the film’s lasting influence on decades of cinema. 

#TalkingPondo #FilmPodcast #MoviePodcast #ClassicFilms #FilmAnalysis #TheHudsuckerProxy #SunsetBoulevard #CoenBrothers #BillyWilder #NewYearsMovies #FilmNoir #ClassicHollywood

End of show plug by Marty

Support the show

Find our films here:

The Love Song of William H Shaw

Revenge of Zoe

Writing Fren-Zee

Making Pondo on Facebook

X (formerly Twitter):
@MakingPondo

Instagram

Making Pondo on Letterboxd:
Season One

Season Two

Season Three

Season Four

Theme Song "The Rain" by Russ Pace

Photos by Geoffrey Notkin

Send a text

 In this episode, Jessica Stone joins the podcast. She brings along the movie Rare Exports. Marty and Clif give Jessica the movie The Ref to watch.

This milestone episode gets it's start with Ted Demme’s The Ref (1994). The trio breaks down Dennis Leary’s breakout performance as a cat burglar forced into referee duty for a brutally unhappy family, discussing the film’s sharp dialogue, performative holiday traditions, and why its mix of rage, therapy, and forced honesty still works decades later.

The conversation then shifts north - way north - with Rare Exports (2010), a Finnish holiday horror film that re-imagines Santa Claus as something far older and far more dangerous. The group digs into what makes the film so effective, how it contrasts with The Ref, and why both movies ultimately tap into the same holiday anxieties in very different ways.

 It’s funny, unhinged, thoughtful - and the perfect way to ring in 100 episodes of Talking Pondo. 

#TalkingPondo #FilmPodcast #MoviePodcast #FilmDiscussion #ChristmasMovies #HolidayMovies #DarkChristmas #CultFilms #TheRef1994 #RareExports #DennisLeary #FinnishHorror #Episode100 #FilmAnalysis #MovieTalk 

End of show plug by Marty

Support the show

Find our films here:

The Love Song of William H Shaw

Revenge of Zoe

Writing Fren-Zee

Making Pondo on Facebook

X (formerly Twitter):
@MakingPondo

Instagram

Making Pondo on Letterboxd:
Season One

Season Two

Season Three

Season Four

Theme Song "The Rain" by Russ Pace

Photos by Geoffrey Notkin