Back Row at Bank Street!

Two old friends cracking wise and talking thoughtfully about favorite flicks as if from their cozy seats at the back of a beloved theater. Pass the popcorn! Current Season: Apocalypse Then! Looking back at dystopian cinema from the ridiculous to the sublime - just as it was looking forward to...now?

A Faithless Franchise! Episode 3 - Exorcist Believer 07/24/2026

A Faithless Franchise! Episode 3 - Exorcist Believer Oh what can it mean? To an Exorcist Believer and a homecoming queen? Our deep dive into prequels, sequels and requels to The Exorcist continues with 2023's Exorcist Believer, directed by David Gordon Green, and starring Leslie Odom Jr., Ann Dowd, Lidya Jewett, Olivia O'Neill, and unbelievably, Ellen Burstyn and Linda Blair. Ab and Al are not Believers in this muddled pastiche of Exorcist moments, ill-fitting social commentary, and Unitarian Universalist-ish philosophy. We veer off into the DGG Halloween requels and Mesopotamian deity fights. Will Mike Flanagan exorcise this minor demon? Puppies were saved and worthy actors will get to study their craft, so it's all good! /episode/index/show/cb68f67e-fbe3-444b-a0ee-a55a4ea4db79/id/42200810

A Faithless Franchise! Episode 2 - Exorcist the Beginning 06/17/2026

A Faithless Franchise! Episode 2 - Exorcist the Beginning In Episode 2 of A Faithless Franchise, Ab and Al get into a discussion of Renny Harlin's Exorcist: The Beginning, the remake of an as-yet unreleased prequel to The Exorcist! Spoiler: We hate it, thanks. Harlin did his job but we think it's tacky and it should keep The Exorcist's name out of it's filthy mouth (cue Will Smith slap) - even though John Waters should champion the last act. Conclusion: just put Russell Crowe on a vespa and have him fight the horny toad lady. Opening music is "Miracle - FMA Podcast" by - licensed under an . Source: /episode/index/show/cb68f67e-fbe3-444b-a0ee-a55a4ea4db79/id/41674530

A Faithless Franchise! Episode 1 - Dominion: A Prequel to the Exorcist 05/13/2026

A Faithless Franchise! Episode 1 - Dominion: A Prequel to the Exorcist Enter, ye of little faith! Back Row at Bank Street starts its new season now. In "A Faithless Franchise" we are covering sequels, prequels and in-between of 1973's The Exorcist. We begin this journey with 2025's Dominion: A Prequel to the Exorcist, directed by the legendary Paul Schrader. Ab and Al actually like this movie a lot and agree that it is thematically very rich. We talk Calvinism, Catholicism, Colonialism and CGI hyenas. Is it scary? Is it worthy of the brand name "Exorcist"? Does anyone else see what we see in it? Listen and let us know what you think! Opening music is "Miracle - FMA Podcast" by - licensed under an . Source: /episode/index/show/cb68f67e-fbe3-444b-a0ee-a55a4ea4db79/id/41275755

Blood Drive! Episode 17 - Twilight (2008) 04/23/2026

Blood Drive! Episode 17 - Twilight (2008) Back Row at Bank Street has hit the brakes on the Blood Drive! And what better vampire movie to end this season than... Twilight? Unfortunately, yes. Have a seat, grab some Swig, and listen to us discuss bad prose and bad screenwriting, this movie's bizarre premise, and how it all relates to a certain theological point of view. We also talk about moral panics and the messages this movie may or may not be imparting. Is there a perfect vampire boyfriend out there? We've had a blast on the Blood Drive road trip through vampire movies, and we hope you did too. We will probably pull the stake out of its heart and return to a vampire cinema/TV season soon. Opening music is "Miracle - FMA Podcast" by - licensed under an . Source: /episode/index/show/cb68f67e-fbe3-444b-a0ee-a55a4ea4db79/id/40986630

Blood Drive! Episode 16 - Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1992) 03/15/2026

Blood Drive! Episode 16 - Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1992) Welcome to the episode of The Blood Drive that's sooooo five minutes ago! Well more like 33 years ago. We are talking about 1992's Buffy the Vampire Slayer. We discuss the legendary cast of this very light confection, and it's surprisingly good soundtrack. Are California teens America's teens? We even leave some room to honor the vastly superior television series. Opening music is "Miracle - FMA Podcast" by - licensed under an . Source: /episode/index/show/cb68f67e-fbe3-444b-a0ee-a55a4ea4db79/id/40484930

Blood Drive! Episode 15 - Blade (1998) 02/20/2026

Blood Drive! Episode 15 - Blade (1998) The Blood Drive rolls up to the comic book-action-horror underworld of 1998's Blade! It's two thumbs up for this highly influential movie. We discuss some production history, our favorite performances, the history of Blade in Marvel Comics, and much, much more. Opening music is "Miracle - FMA Podcast" by - licensed under an . Source: /episode/index/show/cb68f67e-fbe3-444b-a0ee-a55a4ea4db79/id/40172360

Blood Drive! Episode 14 - Queen of the Damned (2002) 01/24/2026

Blood Drive! Episode 14 - Queen of the Damned (2002) The Blood Drive is on the last leg of the Anne Rice road trip, as we discuss 2002's Queen of the Damned! We speak of Nu Metal, our glam and dandy immortal Mr. Stuart Townsend (was he better than Tom Cruise? Was he better than Sam Reid?), Aaliyah's excellence (RIP), mid goth clubs, kidnapped goth extras, and much, much more! Listeners, tell us what you think if this movie! Opening music is "Miracle - FMA Podcast" by - licensed under an . Source: /episode/index/show/cb68f67e-fbe3-444b-a0ee-a55a4ea4db79/id/39859440

Blood Drive! Episode 13 - Interview With the Vampire (Series 2022) 12/21/2025

Blood Drive! Episode 13 - Interview With the Vampire (Series 2022) Lucky episode 13 takes the Blood Drive to 2022 to talk about the Interview With the Vampire, the series! Ab and Al are obsessive completionists and we're going to go through the adaptations of these Anne Rice vamps. This ain't the novel, but it's a fascinating take on the source material. Louis is different, Claudia is different, Daniel is way different, Armand is mean. But it comes together very well and we like it. Great actors, none of which are Jared Leto. We need the Daniel style of journalism back. Tell us what you think! /episode/index/show/cb68f67e-fbe3-444b-a0ee-a55a4ea4db79/id/39483890

Blood Drive! Episode 12 - Interview With the Vampire (1994) 10/31/2025

Blood Drive! Episode 12 - Interview With the Vampire (1994) Happy Halloween everyone! The Blood Drive celebrates the S'amhain season by discussing Neil Jordan's 1994 colossus, Interview With The Vampire. Based on Anne Rice's iconic novel, Ab and Al discuss casting controversies, camp and mopey tragic vamps. Kirsten Dunst gets her flowers, and is there any place Antonio Banderas can't go? Take my vampire wife, PLEASE!!! /episode/index/show/cb68f67e-fbe3-444b-a0ee-a55a4ea4db79/id/38855955

Blood Drive! Episode 11 - Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992) 09/24/2025

Blood Drive! Episode 11 - Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992) The Blood Drive takes Exit 1992 straight into Francis Ford Coppola's masterpiece, Bram Stoker's Dracula! Absynthe takes us through the production and stylizing of this strange, surreal movie. We discuss almost-casts, the influence of this movie on later genre cinema, and much much more! /episode/index/show/cb68f67e-fbe3-444b-a0ee-a55a4ea4db79/id/38335250

Blood Drive! Episode 10 - Vampire's Kiss (1989) 07/13/2025

Blood Drive! Episode 10 - Vampire's Kiss (1989) The Blood Drive exits the 1980s with with Vampire's Kiss (1989!). This is our season covering vampire movies, but was there even a vampire in this one? Trigger warning - sexual assault and animal cruelty. Topics include: Cage-outs, decadent 1980s nightclubs, abusive Manhattan corporate culture, possible rabies, and notorious occult bookstores. This movie is more straightforward than you might think. /episode/index/show/cb68f67e-fbe3-444b-a0ee-a55a4ea4db79/id/37387625

Blood Drive! Episode 9 - Near Dark (1987) 06/07/2025

Blood Drive! Episode 9 - Near Dark (1987) On Episode 9 of the Blood Drive, we pack into a blacked out van and head out west to look at the vampire western Near Dark from 1987. We compare and contrast to The Lost Boys, discuss Kathryn Bigelow's interesting body of work, and marvel at all of the excellent actors in this movie. Anne Rice minus the aristocracy? Who did Jesse Hooker and his pack vote for? Where does this movie fall in the canon of 1980s vampire cinema? What do you think of Near Dark? /episode/index/show/cb68f67e-fbe3-444b-a0ee-a55a4ea4db79/id/36901665

Blood Drive! Episode 8 - The Lost Boys (1987) 05/01/2025

Blood Drive! Episode 8 - The Lost Boys (1987) The Blood Drive is on the Pacific Coast Highway to Santa Cru - err, Santa "Carla" - to visit with The Lost Boys from 1987! Ab and Al, two very Gen X kids, think it's the perfect summer movie, and Gen Z ambassador provides some sharp, smart analysis. Topcs discussed include: What's the real romance here? Are Reagan era values upheld? Who dressed Corey Haim in this film? What would the Lost Boys look like in 2025? Is the soundtrack actually good, or is it only a mood? Listeners, we want your input! /episode/index/show/cb68f67e-fbe3-444b-a0ee-a55a4ea4db79/id/36384550

Blood Drive! Episode 7 - The Hunger (1983) 04/16/2025

Blood Drive! Episode 7 - The Hunger (1983) The Blood Drive zooms along to the 1980s, as Ab and Al talk about the notorious 1983 vampire fever dream The Hunger! This episode, as SNL's Stefon might say, has it all: Goths. Goth rock stars. Goth clubs. Medical labs that look like goth clubs. Bisexuals. Fluttering curtains. Doves. Icy French legends. Rapidly aging glam rock legends. Ankhs. Rabid monkeys. Vengeful zombies. Missing neighborhood kids. Gratuitous Willem Dafoe. Ab and Al remember when they saw Peter Murphy perform, but forget the name of an NYC avenue, and they try to figure out the why's and hows of how the vampiress Miriam Blaylock is undone (spoiler: they're still not sure). Al is absolutely terrified of Miriam. What lurks inside the mind of writer Whitley Strieber? What do you think? Let us know! /episode/index/show/cb68f67e-fbe3-444b-a0ee-a55a4ea4db79/id/36182840

Blood Drive! Episode 6 - Dracula (1979) 03/14/2025

Blood Drive! Episode 6 - Dracula (1979) If you want Frank Langella's body, and ya think he's sexy, then this is the episode for you! The Blood Drive takes a turn up the English coastline to visit John Badham's Dracula from 1979. Is this a peak disco era movie? Is it horror, romance, or both? Is it good and bad? Is John Badham the Quentin Tarantino of hands? Come hear what we think, and then share what you think! /episode/index/show/cb68f67e-fbe3-444b-a0ee-a55a4ea4db79/id/35682010

Blood Drive! Episode 5 - Nosferatu (2024) 02/20/2025

Blood Drive! Episode 5 - Nosferatu (2024) On the fifth episode of Blood Drive, Ab and Al leap forward in time to 2024 to capitalize on Nosfer-mania! We discuss Nosferatu (2024), directed by Robert Eggers and starring Nicholas Hoult, Lily-Rose Depp, Willem Dafoe, and Bill Skarsgard. To the disappointment of Mr. Absynthe, a fight does not ensue, but we do discuss Victorian psychology, and the hypersexualized, occult significance of Ellen Hutter as played by Depp. /episode/index/show/cb68f67e-fbe3-444b-a0ee-a55a4ea4db79/id/35360235

Blood Drive! Episode 4 - Nosferatu the Vampyre (1979) 02/03/2025

Blood Drive! Episode 4 - Nosferatu the Vampyre (1979) In the fourth episode of our Blood Drive, Ab and Al take a look at 1979's Nosferatu by the legendary Werner Herzog. We talk the real life horrors of Klaus Kinski and animal cruelty, our love for the cinematography of this movie, Isabelle Adjani's complex portrayal of Lucy, and what the hell the ending was supposed to mean! And we tease our next episode, where we may need to agree to disagree about Nosferatu 2024! /episode/index/show/cb68f67e-fbe3-444b-a0ee-a55a4ea4db79/id/35124115

Blood Drive! Episode 3 - The Vampire Lovers 01/05/2025

Blood Drive! Episode 3 - The Vampire Lovers The Blood Drive rides on with our 3rd episode discussing 1970's The Vampire Lovers. Join us as we discuss this infamous adaptation of J. Sheridan LeFanu's classic vampire novella, Carmilla. /episode/index/show/cb68f67e-fbe3-444b-a0ee-a55a4ea4db79/id/34723305

Blood Drive! Episode 2 - Dracula A.D. 1972 11/05/2024

Blood Drive! Episode 2 - Dracula A.D. 1972 Diiiig the music, kids! In Episode 2 of our Season 2, Blood Drive, we discuss Hammer Films' Dracula A.D 1972. Hear us talk about how we first got turned on to Hammer Films! the What Ifs of this movie! A history of Hammer Horror! Our love of Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing! Shocking hippies that could've been glam rock kids! That one friend in the friend group that brings everyone down!Though many don't like this movie, we love it's campy warm cheese and we hope you do too. /episode/index/show/cb68f67e-fbe3-444b-a0ee-a55a4ea4db79/id/33789037

Blood Drive! Episode 1 - Dracula's Daughter 10/09/2024

Blood Drive! Episode 1 - Dracula's Daughter Welcome to Blood Drive! This is Season 2 of Back Row at Bank Street. Just in time for Halloween season and beyond, Ab and Al will be looking at some great vampire movies. First up is the classic 1936 Universal Monsters sequel, Dracula's Daughter! Our discussion includes The Hayes Code, the history of Universal Studios horror, LGBTQ representation, and much, much more! /episode/index/show/cb68f67e-fbe3-444b-a0ee-a55a4ea4db79/id/33385972

Apocalypse Then! Episode 8 - Idiocracy 10/01/2024

Apocalypse Then! Episode 8 - Idiocracy Back Row at Bank street ends its Apocalypse Then! series with the 2006 doc- err, apocalyptic comedy film, Idiocracy. We discuss why this film has and has not aged well, and why it might actually be the way we go out in North America. Stay tuned for Blood Drive! /episode/index/show/cb68f67e-fbe3-444b-a0ee-a55a4ea4db79/id/33275517

Apocalypse Then! Episode 7 - V For Vendetta 08/23/2024

Apocalypse Then! Episode 7 - V For Vendetta It's our penultimmate episode of Apocalypse Then! And ChillerPop and Absynthe bring you the 2006 graphic novel adaptation V For Vendetta! Hear us go off on the "war on terror", trumpism, the pandemic, fascism and more! Does this movie make you want to stand up to evil authoritarians? What banned books and music would YOU keep in your secret lair? Let us know! /episode/index/show/cb68f67e-fbe3-444b-a0ee-a55a4ea4db79/id/32708507

Apocalypse Then! Episode 6 - Dark City 08/01/2024

Apocalypse Then! Episode 6 - Dark City Apocalypse Then! continues as we take a look at the 1998 neo-noir science fiction movie, Dark City! Directed by Alex Proyas, and starring Rufus Sewell, William Hurt, Kiefer Sutherland, Jennifer Connelly, Richard O'Brien and Ian Richardson. Like Blade Runner before it, this movie asks "what does it mean to be human?" and we're pretty sure it might have something to do with test tube paint mixtures by a very Renfield-esque Kiefer Sutherland. We also talk about noir cinema, pre-millenium tension, and why our alien nosferatu overlords are all dudes. Let us know what you think! /episode/index/show/cb68f67e-fbe3-444b-a0ee-a55a4ea4db79/id/32379907

Apocalypse Then! Episode 5 - Night of the Comet 07/11/2024

Apocalypse Then! Episode 5 - Night of the Comet On this fifth episode of Apocalypse Then! two former 80s teens talk about an apocalyptic movie featuring two 80s teens. We dig into Thom Eberhardt's camp classic Night of the Comet. See: proto-gamer girls! Sparse, talkative and fast zombies! Highly incompetent government conspirators! The magnificent menace of Mary Woronov! Quincy...Kraftwerks? And Ab reveals precisely how one might preserve their big hair after the world ends. /episode/index/show/cb68f67e-fbe3-444b-a0ee-a55a4ea4db79/id/32092947

Apocalypse Then! Episode 4 - Blade Runner 2049 05/23/2024

Apocalypse Then! Episode 4 - Blade Runner 2049 On the fourth episode of Apocalypse Then! Ab and Al discuss Denis Villeneuve's 2017 film Blade Runner 2049, a sequel to the storied cult classic Blade Runner from 1982. We discuss what it means to be human (of course), an AI's AI, when San Francisco imitated art, the return of Harrison Ford and Sean Young to this universe, and we deem Blade Runner 2049 an artistic success! /episode/index/show/cb68f67e-fbe3-444b-a0ee-a55a4ea4db79/id/31429707

Apocalypse Then! Episode 3 - The Omega Man 04/13/2024

Apocalypse Then! Episode 3 - The Omega Man Grab the popcorn and join us at the end of the world as we fight weird Luddites with Charlton Heston and Rosalind Cash! We discuss 8 tracks, cults, the Heston of it all, and the eerily prescient pandemic and reproductive rights issues this movie brings up. /episode/index/show/cb68f67e-fbe3-444b-a0ee-a55a4ea4db79/id/30810758

Apocalypse Then! Episode 2 - Gattaca 03/05/2024

Apocalypse Then! Episode 2 - Gattaca Join ChillerPop and Absynthe as we test In-Valid for the upper echelons of Gattaca! We discuss cheekbones, solar panels, 1960s aesthetics, Aldous Huxley, and what it means to be human. /episode/index/show/cb68f67e-fbe3-444b-a0ee-a55a4ea4db79/id/30233423

Apocalypse Then! Episode 1 - Zardoz 02/10/2024

Apocalypse Then! Episode 1 - Zardoz Welcome to the first episode of Back Row at Bank Street! In this first episode, Ab and Al discuss John Boorman's insane 1974 film Zardoz. Come hear about floating heads, men behind curtains, religious parables, thigh high boots and red briefs, psychic fops, class struggle, good guns and bad penises, and whether or not Viagra could have saved the Eternals! Current Season: Apocalypse Then! Looking back at dystopian cinema from the ridiculous to the sublime - just as it was looking forward to...now? /episode/index/show/cb68f67e-fbe3-444b-a0ee-a55a4ea4db79/id/29837518

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