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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

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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.

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Find our films here:

The Love Song of William H Shaw

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Theme Song "The Rain" by Russ Pace

Photos by Geoffrey Notkin

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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.

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