The CineClub Podcast

It’s a special episode this week to celebrate Graduation. We managed to squeeze five presenters into Studio 4 so that Matthew, Emily, Rhys, Jake and Billy could reminisce together about their time studying at the University of Sunderland and being regular CineClub members. They each pick their favourite films from the course, from CineClub and one final film they’d love to screen - that’s a lot to...

To celebrate his 100th birthday, CineClub celebrates the work of Mel Brooks. This week’s presenters, Elliott, Dion and Billy pick their favourite Brooks films including Young Frankenstein (1974), Spaceballs (1987) and The Producers (1967) and Blazing Saddles (1974). The team discuss the impact of Brooks in the development of the parody/spoof film, his acting appearances in random films and his hug...

This week the team of Billy, Emily and Rhys take another foray into the realm of television with a discussion of the fantasy epic Game of Thrones and it’s spin offs House of the Dragon and A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms . There is a lot of chat about the characters and plot points and a bit of ranting from Rhys about subverting expectations, plot armour and some apparent ‘teleporting’… Our present...

It’s back to the Golden Age of Hollywood this week on the podcast with Jake and Billy looking back on the work of director Billy Wilder. It’s classics all the way from Double Indemnity (1944) to Sunset Boulevard (1950), The Seven Year Itch (1955), Some Like it Hot (1959) and The Apartment (1960). The guys rank their favourites and ruminate on the repeating tropes in Wilder’s films and whether Wild...

This week our CineClub presenters forego the big screen and have a night in to review their favourite prestige television picks. Goodness knows how Matthew, Jake, Adam, Dion and Billy all managed to fit in the studio at once, but they definitely have fun discussing Better Call Saul (AMC), 3 Body Problem (Netflix), Invincible (Amazon Prime), Pantheon (AMC) and Daredevil (Netflix). TeleClub produces...

This week the team investigate the filmography of the late, great, David Lynch. Starting with Eraserhead (1980), The Elephant Man (1980), Dune (1984) and Blue Velvet (1986) Jake, Matthew, Dion and Billy discuss the weird wonders of early Lynch. CineClub engineer and editor Emily makes her very first appearance on mic to discuss Twin Peaks before the team review his later films. Stay til the end an...

This week Rhys and Billy chat to film scholar Dr Steve Cannon about the French New Wave. The conversation begins discussing the emergence of the New Wave and how it captures the spirit of the era of 1950’s and 1960’s France. The team discuss the innovations of the New Wave directors, not only with new film techniques such as direct address to the audience, but also with ideas and style. Most impor...

This week the team, Elliott, Billy, Connell and Jake, talk Hong Kong action films. Starting with Bruce Lee’s classic martial arts films Enter the Dragon (1974) and Way of the Dragon (1972) our film devotees appreciate the spectacular fight scenes and wonder about the crossover with video games. The conversation moves on to consider ways the genre has evolved - sometimes with comic elements such as...

This week the team of Matthew, Dion and Rhys review the extensive filmography of the acclaimed and influential director, Martin Scorsese. Starting with Goodfellas (1990), Cape Fear (1991), Taxi Driver (1976) and Raging Bull (1981) the discussion focuses upon Scorsese’s repeated use of specific actors and his skill in creating trust on set which enables great on-screen performances. The chat even c...

This week Dion, Matthew, Rhys and Billy focus upon Nick Park’s Aardman films. The discussion begins with the quirky British charm of the Wallace and Gromit shorts and features from A Grand Day Out (1989) The Wrong Trousers (1993) A Close Shave (1995) The Curse of the Were-Rabbit (2005) A Matter of Loaf and Death (2008) and Vengeance Most Fowl (2024). The team remark upon the success of the spin-of...

This week Jake chats with film maker Andrew T Smith. Andrew was writer and editor of acclaimed documentary Filmed in Supermarionation (2014) about the work of Gerry and Sylvia Anderson. Andrew discusses the process of supermarionation film making and the broader work of Century 21 Film Productions such as Thunderbirds: The Anniversary Episodes (2015) and Nebula-75 (2020). His current work is focus...

This week the team of Elliott, Joseph, Samantha and Adam discuss film adaptations such as The Maze Runner (2014) , The Hobbit (2012) , Wuthering Heights (2026) , Red, White and Royal Blue (2023) , The Hunger Games (2012) and Dune (2021) . There are strong opinions on some fan favourites and some witty one-liners from Joseph. Wuthering Heights attracts some high emotions from laughing inappropriate...

This week the team of Billy, Jake and Matthew are joined by Dr Dan Ward. The episode starts with a general chat about action films such as the Rambo films, Big Trouble in Little China (1986) and Taken (2008). The discussion extends to the connections between the military and action films. Dr Dan explains the use of films as ‘soft power’ for governments. You’ll never watch an action film in the sam...

It’s Oscar time this week at CineClub Podcast as the team discuss the contenders for the golden statuette – arguably the most recognised film trophy in the world. The two front runners, One Battle After Another (2025) and Sinners (2025) are not everyone’s favourite picks. And the chat between Dion, Elliott, Adam and Billy soon moves to ask questions about the fairness (or not) of the nominations p...

Our presenters Matthew, Adam, Ben and Billy indulge in some guilty pleasures this week looking at some questionable but loved films such as Popeye (1980), The Man Who Fell to Earth (1976), The Lego Ninjago Movie (2027), North Sea Hijack (1980) and Venom (1981). A recurring theme in the discussion is also the behind the scenes guilty pleasures of the actors/directors during film production. Tune in...

This week it’s the good, the bad and the ugly of movie posters. The team of Connell, Elliott, Matthew and Jake have a blast discussing their favourites and fails of film promo posters. Our presenters are Connell, Elliott, Matthew and Jake. The episode was engineered and edited by Emily Main. Let us know what your favourite Film Poster and what would you like to see on the CineClub Podcast in the f...

Biopics are a relatively new genre so the team of Matthew, Ben, Samanatha and Jake have some fun highlighting the key elements and emerging trends in this type. There’s a review of Air (2023), A Complete Unknown (2024), Rocket Man (2019) and Patton (1970). The team wonder about ‘truth’ claims in some of the films and whether the tendency to represent only a small section of a person’s life will co...

In this episode the team of Connell, Billy, Dion and Rhys turn their attention to the everlasting wonder of The Wizard of Oz (1939, Fleming) and it’s adaptations Wicked (2024, Chu), Wicked: For Good (2025, Chu), The Wiz (1978, Lumet) Return to Oz (1985, Murch) and the obscure After the Wizard (2011, Gross). The discussion focuses upon the timeless quality of the 1939 film from many perspectives su...

In this episode, the team of Elliott, Billy, Dion and Jake discuss the Tron franchise focusing on Tron (1982, Lisberger), Tron: Legacy (2010, Kosinski) and Tron: Ares (2025, Rønning). The chat covers the aesthetics of the films and how innovative the first film was, but also the generally weak dialogue and the annoyingly long gaps between the films. Interestingly, the connections to other film, te...

This week the Podcast is recorded in front of a live audience as part of our International Film Festival where we screened Divines (2016), Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown (1988) and Chungking Express (1995). The team of Florence, Rhys and Jake take questions about the films from the audience and provide commentary on the cultural and historical contexts and overall style of each of the f...

It’s a milestone this week for The CineClub Podcast as we reach 50 episodes! To celebrate the Golden Anniversary, the team of Jake, Billy, Matthew and Bebe take a nostalgic review of the evolution of the podcast. It’s a joyous episode of quirky behind the scenes memories, a few film one-liners and some highs and lows along the way. It’s a love letter to CineClub itself… Our presenters are Jake, Bi...

In this episode Billy, Rhys, Jake and Elliott engage in some rapid-fire banter about the Predator universe of films. Jake and Elliott confess to watching the Predator films before they were strictly old enough and this prompts some quite deep chat. The group rank some of the older films and spend time considering the crossover films and the lore of the universe overall. It’s clear there are some P...

We’re back after the festive break and exploring the Rom-Com genre with old hands Matthew and Jake and newbies Amy and Samantha. The team pick out some favourites: Annie Hall (1977), When Harry Met Sally (1989) Notting Hill (1999) and the less well-known Swedish film Four More Years (2010). The discussion naturally focusses on love and laughs and the difficulties of making comedy work across cultu...

This week we get to commemorate a very important birth… yes, it’s a year since the first CineClub Podcast! The team of Jake, Ben, Joseph and Adam talk favourite festive films from Home Alone (1990) and Home Alone 2 (1992), to Arthur Christmas (2011) and Klaus (2019). The chat covers some of the quirky characters, music and strange plots, and even whether Nightmare Before Christmas (1993) is a Chri...

This week the team of Billy, Matthew and Rhys welcome new presenter, Ben. The discussion addresses the expectations of the western genre and highlights how genres can develop over time. The team discuss pre and post 1950’s westerns and how these films become increasingly action packed as they move from the ‘classic’ western to the parody westerns such as Blazing Saddles (1974) and Three Amigos (19...