Frank & Sense

Ali Grusell returns to the show for our very first travel episode! Frank and Ali go to Iceland, and you get to come along for the journey! It's our most Nordic episode yet. We talk Icelandic facts, like the 24 hours of daylight, the history of women leading the country, their lack of a military, their lack of crime, and, of course, PIZZA. Apologies to any Icelandic listeners for all of our pro...

Today we are talking about a topic near and dear to my heart: Pointless Theatre. My guests today are Matthew Reckeweg, Patti Kalil, and Lex Davis. Matthew and Patti are the co-founding artistic directors of Pointless, and Lex and I served as chairs of Pointless for the last two years. For those of you who are listening who may not be familiar, Pointless Theatre is a theater company based in Washin...

Our old pals Becca Ballinger and Rebecca Wahls are back on the show to talk about Taylor Swift's most recent album, "The Life of a Showgirl!" Since the last time we talked about Taylor, she got the rights to her music back, she got engaged, and she did a podcast. (She’s welcome on our show anytime, btw!) She's done dating Hamlets and she's knocking on Wood. She's back with...

In the final episode of Oscarspalooza 2026, Frank is joined (as always) by Matt Sparacino and Mitch Lerner as they bid a fond farewell to the year in film. It's our wrap party, and you're invited! We discuss the Oscars themselves and reveal our rankings of the 2026 Best Picture nominees. Then, Matt takes the stage to host the 2nd annual Matty Awards! We also hear some voicemails from the l...

ALL ABOARD! It's time to board the train. One. Last. Time. That's right, our final Best Picture nominee episode is here, and it's the 2025 film "Train Dreams!" Matt, Mitch, and Frank have an absolutely normal conversation about this whimsical, melancholy, meditative film and do not get sidetracked by any stupid train jokes. They talk about male loneliness, the effect of being a...

Prepare yourself for a sinfully good time! It's time to grab a wooden stake, whiskey, and a guitar, because Matt, Mitch, and Frank are talking about Ryan Coogler's "Sinners." The boys talk about vampires, Michael B Jordan, Delroy Lindo, Ryan Coogler, ranking the seven deadly sins, a Disney Channel Original Movie, the best millennial directors, and oh so much more. It's a bloody...

It's our most Norwegian episode ever as Matt, Mitch, and Frank talk about Joachim Trier's 2025 film "Sentimental Value!" We talk about generational trauma, the concept of "hygge," The Worst Person in the World, and of course the house. Plus, Frank debuts his flawless impression of Stellan Skarsgaard!

It is a podcast of great mischief! Matt, Mitch, and Frank take a trip down to Brazil as we discuss "The Secret Agent." We talk about the importance of societal memory, the process of reconstructing memory, and, of course, the hot dentist. We also learn about Mitch's partner, the hairy leg. All of that, plus Frank's flawless pronunciation of Portguese words and Brazilian names! Come...

Fuck the police and viva la revolution! From here on in, it's one podcast after another. Matt, Mitch, and Frank gather together to talk about the frontrunner for Best Picture: One Battle After Another. Crack open one small beer and join us for a conversation about PTA, Leo, Teyana Taylor, the Christmas Adventurers Club, expectations vs reality, and, of course, Frankenstein. Hail St. Nick!

Frank is joined by Matty Supreme and Mitchy Supreme to talk about the 2025 Josh Safdie film "Marty Supreme." Is it the best table tennis movie of all time? Probably. Is it also a stressful romp with a somewhat unlikable guy? You betcha! We talk Timothee, ping pong balls, Jewish identity, alternate endings, and oh so much more. Plus, we play a game of Most Supreme Elimination Challenge. Dre...

Hear ye, hear ye! Gather around for ye olde podcaste! Forsooth, we gather here today to discuss the tragedy of "Hamnet," the 2025 film by Chloe Zhao. Open your heart and prepare for a real witchy movie about some guy named William Shakespeare and some play called Hamlet. Plus, a special guest tells us about her experience at the LA premiere for this movie, Chloe Zhao's breathing exerci...

IT'S ALIVE! Matt, Mitch, and Frank gather for possibly the most Frank episode of all time: A discussion of the 2025 film "Frankenstein." The boys talk all about this dark fairy tale from Guillermo del Toro. Topics include: The book, other Frankenstein adaptations, the gorgeous design of this film, and Frankenstein's farts. Victorrrrr!

On your mark, get set, podcast! Matt Sparacino, Mitch Lerner, Frank, and special guest Paige Kistler gather together to talk about "F1: The Movie." Buckle up, cuz this podcast is built for combat! We talk about sports movies, racing movies, and, of course, Heineken Zero. This podcast is brought to you by Heineken Zero, by the way. Crack open an ice cold refreshing Heineken Zero and start y...

Matt Sparacino and Mitch Lerner return for the first of our ten episodes on the Best Picture nominees: "Bugonia." Don't worry - Mitch is definitely not an alien! To make sure you listen to this podcast properly, and with a clear head, please be sure to chemically castrate yourself. We talk about this movie that is Greek as hell. Topics include the big three: Bees, basements, and spaces...

The boys are back in town! Matt Sparacino and Mitch Lerner make their triumphant return for the 5th annual (!) Oscarspalooza. It's our honorable mentions episode where we are sharing a few of our favorite movies from 2025 that weren't nominated for Best Picture: Friendship, No Other Choice, 28 Years Later, Weapons, Eddington, and Avatar: Fire and Ash. We also discuss our thoughts on movies...

Sometimes ordinary people get swept up into extraordinary events. This is one of those stories. On October 7th, 2023, Liat Benin and her husband Aviv were kidnapped from their kibbutz in Israel and taken to Gaza. In the aftermath, Liat's family embarks on a mission to advocate for their release, while refusing to let their captivity be used to justify violence in Gaza. Brandon and Lance Kramer...

Shhhh...it's our QUIETEST podcast ever. It's the final week of Jakeuary, and this week we're (very quietly) talking about a very quiet movie: the 2018 John Krasinski film A Quiet Place . It's also Jake's flu game episode! The boys talk about Krasinski, Emily Blunt, whether the monsters are just being cranky, sexual performance in the post-apocalypse, the use of sound and silenc...

He can fly, he can fight, and he can P-P-PODCAST! Join Frank, Jake, and Becca Barish for a bangarang good time as we fly away to Never Land and discuss the 1991 Steven Spielberg classic "Hook!" We discuss Spielberg, Robin Williams, Peter Pan, and oh so much more. Topics include movies vs film, green goo, how this movie changed Jake and Becca's lives, The Boo Box, Tinkerhell, mad dads,...

Jakeuary continues and this week the weather report is Cloudy with a Chance of PODCAST! This week, Frank, Jake, and special guest Jay Kasten join together to talk about a truly tasty little treat of a movie, the 2009 film "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs." We talk about the book, meatballs themselves, Jake's thoughts on hot food, plates vs. bowls, Lord & Miller, and much much mor...

Our national nightmare is over - Jakeuary is back, everyone! Jake Frelick returns to the show with another batch of movies to discuss, and today we begin with the overlooked 2011 film "Hanna" starring Ladybird herself, Saoirse Ronan. It's a fun movie about a child super soldier on a quest for revenge. No, but it really is fun! Frank and Jake talk about the Chemical Brothers score, dire...

Welcome to Podlatro: The Podcast About Balatro! For the final episode of 2025, Frank is joined by a couple of buffoons - Michael Saltzman, Jay Kasten, and Zach Latta - to discuss the 2024 video game Balatro. If you’ve never heard of it, you’ll learn alllllll about it on this episode. And it’ll give you a Balat-tro think about! It’s a card game with a twist, and it’s one of the most addicting and i...

THANK GOODNESS!!! I couldn't be happier! Becca Ballinger and Rebecca Wahls join the show again to return to the land of Oz and talk about the 2025 film Wicked: For Good. We are obsessulated with this movie (which is a sequel to a movie of a musical of a book of a movie of a book). We discuss everything - female friendship, sex cardigans, the blue horsie, the decision to split the musical into...

Gobble gobble! It's our first ever Thanksgiving episode, and I'm thrilled to welcome Aaron Killian to the show. Aaron is a historian and the owner of Historic America , a business that does guided tours of historical places in DC and across the mid Atlantic. He’s also a self described conservative, in the classic, traditional sense. We discuss all sorts of things, including how conservatis...

Wootton High School Class of 2005 Vice President Scott Leighty joins the show and we have a LOT to talk about! Scott calls out "fan favorite" guests Sasha Felikson, Ross Godwin, and Mitch Lerner. We then talk senior superlatives, our upcoming 20 year reunion, and whether our lives turned out the way we imagined them when we graduated from high school. Plus, we talk about the Tony Kornheise...

Returning champion Ross Godwin is back on the show and we're here to try out (and discuss) some new ideas! We try out three new segment ideas for the show, and we have a whole bunch of laughs along the way. Topics include John Thune, Cool Girls for Capitalism, Donkey Kong, Star Trek (and the Tholians), and Revenge of the Sith. All of that, plus, Frank does another reading from his LiveJournal!