The Thursday Murder Club

The Thursday Murder Club

Author: TruStory FM September 2, 2025 Duration: 53:50
Case Notes, August 30th, 2025: A suspiciously cozy murder mystery has been committed. The suspects—Tommy Metz III, Mandy Kaplan, Steve Sarmento, and Justin “JJ” Jaeger—have assembled remotely, each with their own dubious alibis and hot takes. The film: The Thursday Murder Club, Netflix’s big adaptation of Richard Osman’s beloved novel. The crime? A charming cast, a confusing mystery, and a script that may or may not have committed third-degree exposition.This month’s Film Board roundtable dives headfirst into the soft lighting and softer stakes of this senior-led whodunit. JJ comes in as the film’s most vocal defender, praising its character-driven structure and comparing it (gasp!) to Knives Out. Tommy and Steve are less convinced, calling the movie pleasant but forgettable, faulting everything from flat cinematography to emotionally neutered finales. Mandy, the show’s resident Osman superfan, mourns the depth lost in translation from page to screen. Pete, meanwhile, accuses Chris Columbus of directing every scene like it’s the trailer—and not in a good way.From plot structure and adaptation choices to the aesthetics of Cooper’s Chase and the misuses of Sir Ben Kingsley, this episode covers it all. Was it a missed opportunity or just an okay pizza? Can Helen Mirren’s exposition dumps be forgiven? Did we really need the cold case? Should somebody address the case of Jonathan Pryce?If you love spirited disagreement, spoilers aplenty, and occasional emotional whiplash caused by the word “cake,” this is your episode.Watch & Discover
Support The Next Reel Family of Film Podcasts:The Next Reel Family of Film Podcasts:Connect With Us:

There’s a particular kind of energy that comes from walking out of a movie theater with a head full of thoughts, needing to unpack everything you just saw with someone who gets it. That’s the feeling The Film Board captures every month. Host Pete Wright gathers a dedicated panel of film enthusiasts-regulars like Tommy Metz III, Steve Sarmento, and Justin Jaeger, plus a rotating lineup of fellow movie lovers-for a roundtable conversation that feels like the best kind of post-movie debrief. They dive into the latest theatrical releases without holding back, so spoilers are a given. You’ll hear them dissect everything from a film’s most bizarre moments and puzzling narrative choices to those random, memorable details that stick with you. This isn’t a formal review show; it’s a lively, opinionated, and deeply informed discussion among friends who are genuinely obsessed with cinema. The conversations are fueled by that shared obsession, resulting in a mix of insightful analysis and unapologetically strong takes. Tune in to this podcast for the kind of candid, detailed, and engaging talk that makes you feel like you’re right there at the table with them, long after the credits have rolled.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

The Film Board
Podcast Episodes
Jurassic World Rebirth [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:06:55
The gang of thugs dons their most practical jungle gear and reluctantly boards the biotech boat for Gareth Edwards’ Jurassic World Rebirth. Scarlett Johansson leads a mission to harvest dinosaur DNA in what Universal hop…
The Phoenician Scheme [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 58:03
Wes Anderson’s The Phoenician Scheme crash-lands into theaters with a symmetry—and we’re here to unpack the wreckage. Benicio Del Toro plays Anatole “Zsa-Zsa” Korda, a morally exhausted arms dealer who survives a plane c…
Thunderbolts* [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 52:31
Are you tired of superheroes who always do the right thing? Exhausted by teams that save the day and, dare we say it, have a plan? This month, The Film Board dives into Marvel’s Thunderbolts—the super squad you get when…
Sinners [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:03:59
Some stories we inherit. Some are whispered through family trees. Others are passed down through song—riffs on pain, echoes of joy, blue notes of survival. In Ryan Coogler’s Sinners, we get all three. And this month, The…
Mickey 17 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:08:47
Prepare yourselves for a journey into the bewildering world of Bong Joon Ho's latest sci-fi offering. That's right—the director who brought you parasites in the basement and tentacles in the river has now delivered expen…
Captain America: Brave New World [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:03:29
Is the latest Captain America film a bold step forward, or a symptom of a larger malaise in the Marvel Cinematic Universe? We grapple with this question, flying into Captain America: Brave New World, not just as a superh…
Wolf Man (2025) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 56:34
Enigmatic whispers in the Oregon woods. A father's love, twisted and gnarled. This isn't your grandmother's werewolf story. Because she probably killed the wolf and made his pelt into a coat, AmIRight?Pete, Tommy, and St…
Red One [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 50:41
Is Amazon's $250 million Christmas blockbuster Red One a fresh take on holiday magic, or a cynical cash grab? Join Pete and guest Matthew Fox as they unwrap this action-packed holiday film starring Dwayne "The Rock" John…
Y2K [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 54:26
Welcome to The Film Board! If you’re anything like us, the year 2000 wasn't just a date on the calendar. It was a marker for boomer low-key existential dread. We’re talking, of course, about the Y2K bug, the fear that ou…
Gladiator II [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 53:50
From the blood-soaked sands of the Colosseum to the hushed halls of the Senate, a shadow looms large over the Roman Empire. It's not the specter of barbarian hordes, but something far more insidious: a sequel. Ridley Sco…