The Next Best Picture Podcast

"I Swear" is a 2025 British biographical drama film directed, written, and produced by Kirk Jones. It is based on the true life story of John Davidson, a Scottish man with severe Tourette syndrome who was the subject of the 1989 television documentary "John's Not Mad." The film stars Robert Aramayo as Davidson, alongside Maxine Peake, Shirley Henderson, and Peter Mullan in supporting roles, with Scott Ellis Watson making his acting debut as a young Davidson. The film premiered at the 2025 Toronto International Film Festival, where it received universal acclaim from critics, who praised the performances of Aramayo and Mullan. The film received five nominations at the 79th British Academy Film Awards, winning two for Best Actor in a Leading Role for Aramayo and Best Casting. Aramayo was kind enough to spend some time talking with us about his work and experience making the film, which you can listen to below. Please be sure to check out the film, which will open in US theaters on April 24th from Sony Pictures Classics. Thank you, and enjoy!

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"Amrum" is a 2025 German historical drama film directed by Fatih Akin and co-written by Akin with Hark Bohm, based on Bohm's childhood on the German island of Amrum during the last months of World War II. It stars Jasper Billerbeck, Kian Köppke, Laura Tonke, Diane Kruger, Detlev Buck and Matthias Schweighöfer. The film had its world premiere in the Cannes Premiere section of the 2025 Cannes Film Festival, where it received positive reviews for its direction, writing, and lead performance from Billerbeck. Bohm died two months after the film's German theatrical release, and the film is dedicated to his memory. Akin was kind enough to spend some time talking with us about his work and experience making the film, which you can listen to below. Please be sure to check out the film, now playing at the Quad Cinema in New York and opening at the Laemmle Royal in Los Angeles on April 24th from Kino Lorber. Thank you, and enjoy!

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For Episode 488, I am joined by Aaron Isenstein, Daniel Howat, and Giovanni Lago as Howat recaps his experience at this year's CinemaCon and the films showcased. We also discuss the Cannes sidebar announcements, including Critics' Week, Acid, and Directors' Fortnight. For this week's poll question, we're asking everyone: "Which Upcoming Movies From CinemaCon 2026 Are You Most Excited To See?" and reveal the winner of last week's poll asking, "Which Films From The 2026 Cannes Film Festival Are You Most Looking Forward To?" We also share our reactions to the trailers for "Focker-In-Law," "The Dog Stars," "Street Fighter," and "Passenger," answer your fan-submitted questions, and more! Thank you all for listening, subscribing, and supporting us. We hope you enjoy!

Check out more on NextBestPicture.com

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Apple Podcasts - https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/negs-best-film-podcast/id1087678387?mt=2

Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/7IMIzpYehTqeUa1d9EC4jT

YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWA7KiotcWmHiYYy6wJqwOw

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For this week's main podcast review, Katie Johnson, Josh Parham, and Cody Dericks join me to review and discuss "Lee Cronin's The Mummy," starring Jack Reynor, Laia Costa, May Calamawy, Verónica Falcón, and Natalie Grace. A reimagining of "The Mummy" franchise (Not THAT "Mummy" franchise starring Brendan Fraser), the film is produced by James Wan and Jason Blum and brings a much darker, more sinister edge to the franchise than has ever been seen before. It injects the same style and tone Cronin brought to the "Evil Dead" franchise, producing something gory, shocking, and punishingly brutal for both the characters and the audience. But what did we think of it? Please tune in as we discuss the story, the acting, sound work, makeup effects, and more in our SPOILER-FILLED review. Thank you for listening, and enjoy!

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Apple Podcasts - https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/negs-best-film-podcast/id1087678387?mt=2

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"Wasteman" is a 2025 British prison film directed by Cal McMau from a screenplay by Hunter Andrews and Eoin Doran. The film stars David Jonsson and Tom Blyth as incarcerated cellmates who have to do what they need to do in order to survive the prison's brutal conditions. The film premiered at the 2025 Toronto International Film Festival, where it received positive reviews for McMau's intense and gritty direction and the powerful performances from Jonsson and Blyth. The two young actors were both kind enough to spend some time talking with us about their work and experience making the film, which you can listen to below. Please be sure to check out the film, which is now playing in theaters from Sunrise Films. Thank you, and enjoy!

Check out more on NextBestPicture.com

Please subscribe on...

Apple Podcasts - https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/negs-best-film-podcast/id1087678387?mt=2

Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/7IMIzpYehTqeUa1d9EC4jT

YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWA7KiotcWmHiYYy6wJqwOw

And be sure to help support us on Patreon for as little as $1 a month at https://www.patreon.com/NextBestPicture and listen to this podcast ad-free
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