Michael and Us

We've gazed into the abyss many times before but the Ray Romano/Gene Hackman comedy WELCOME TO MOOSEPORT (2004) - in which a former U.S. president runs for mayor against a small-town handyman - comes close to breaking us. PLUS: We recap the U.S. midterms, and ask: Is Ron DeSantis a serious threat to Donald Trump? (Short answer: no) Join us on Patreon for an extra episode every week -

We finally felt lucky enough to discuss the grandaddy of right-wing law-and-order movies, DIRTY HARRY (1971). One thing is for certain: this is one cop who takes no guff from no one. PLUS: fiery hot takes on the U.S. midterms, the labour strike that is rocking Canada, and the future of entertainment. Join us on Patreon for an extra episode every week - https://www.patreon.com/michaelandus

Adam McKay's VICE (2018) sought to give Dick Cheney the full reckoning for his crimes through art that he will never receive in life. Is the film necessary cinematic intervention in the ongoing Cheney reclamation project, or a condescending failure? Your hosts disagree sharply on this cinematic polemic. PLUS: fiery hot takes on Elon Musk's Twitter takeover. "'Damn right,' I said" by Eliot Weinberger - https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v33/n01/eliot-weinberger/damn-right-i-said Join us on Patreon for an extra episode every week - https://www.patreon.com/michaelandus

PATREON-EXCLUSIVE EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/74048274 The terrible right-wing documentary RIDING THE DRAGON: THE BIDENS' CHINESE SECRETS (2022) attempts to argue that Joe Biden has used his diplomatic relationship with China to enrich his family. It's a theory that strikes us as basically true, but delivered with right-wing blinders. PLUS: on the political efficacy of throwing soup at paintings, and an update on the U.S. midterms.

PATREON BONUS - https://www.patreon.com/posts/bonus-brazil-w-73950546 Brazil’s extreme-right president Jair Bolsonaro might go down to defeat in the second round of presidential voting. But, win or lose, the political coalition he’s assembled may endure after October 30. In this interview, Luke talks to Vincent Bevins — who lived in Brazil from 2010 to 2016 and worked as a correspondent, wrote The Jakarta Method (2020), and moved back to São Paulo last year to work on his second book — about the issues at play.

In a distant future, a privileged ruling class lives in a city fuelled by an invisible army of workers who toil in barbaric conditions. Yes, this is the far-fetched scenario of one of the most iconic science-fiction films of all time, Fritz Lang's METROPOLIS (1927). We finally discuss the most famous of all Weimer-era movies, and debate whether or not the mediator between the head and the hand really is the heart. WATCH METROPOLIS IN FULL HERE: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5BBnMCAIuQg&ab_channel=SupremeOverlord LINK TO EPISODE #149: FROM CALIGARI TO HITLER (NOW UNLOCKED): https://www.patreon.com/posts/149-from-to-36101522

PATREON-EXCLUSIVE EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/73759807 We discuss the chaotic state of British politics and the sudden end of the 44-day Liz Truss era; Alexandra Pelosi's surprise role in the January 6 hearings; and the very cheap pro-Donald Trump documentary TRUMPOCALYPSE NOW! (2017), another winner from Trump vs. the Illuminati director B.C. Fourteen.

We discuss death, bureaucracy, and postwar Japan in Akira Kurosawa's masterpiece IKURU (1952). PLUS: Everything you always wanted to know about Toronto's political culture (and upcoming municipal election) but were afraid to ask!

PATREON-EXCLUSIVE EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/73406324 In this breezy and chill episode, your hosts compare notes on the craft of writing before getting into the most important topic of our times: a direct-to-streaming oddity called TRUMP VS. THE ILLUMINATI (2020). Cohost Will bravely watched this mysterious 69-minute movie on Tubi and is here to tell the tale.

PATREON-EXCLUSIVE EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/73169180 In one of the most popular documentaries of the Michael Moore era, Morgan Spurlock ate nothing but McDonald's for 30 days. We revisit SUPER SIZE ME (2004) and found - you guessed it! - a relic from a distinctly 2004 era of American liberalism.

In 2015, three American armed forces vets foiled an attack on a train to Paris. Three years later, Clint Eastwood enlisted the boys to re-enact their experience in a major motion picture. The result, THE 15:17 TO PARIS (2018), is a genuinely strange docu-fiction experiment that, yes, has a lot to say about America. Join us on Patreon for an extra episode every week and more bonus content - https://www.patreon.com/michaelandus

PATREON EXCLUSIVE EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/370-world-of-72907776 At long last, we have an extended discussion of a film by Wes Anderson. We discuss Anderson's political vision (or lack thereof) via one of his best films, THE GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL (2013), and ask the question: What is Anderson nostalgic for?

The new documentary series UNPRECEDENTED (2022) seeks to offer an unfiltered look at the Trump family in the weeks before the 2020 election and the January 6 riot. We discuss how its thickets of editorial commentary obscure a potentially compelling look into America's former first family, and then have a laugh reading from Trump Jr's debut book "Triggered." Join us on Patreon for an extra episode every week - https://www.patreon.com/michaelandus

PATREON EXCLUSIVE EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/368-we-can-it-72470448 Our latest Superdelegate winner is Paul Verhoeven's demented blockbuster TOTAL RECALL (1990). We "get our asses to Mars" and discuss the film's future dystopia while also occasionally slipping into involuntary Arnold impressions.

Libertarian magicians Penn & Teller turn their gaze to the art world in TIM'S VERMEER (2013), a documentary that attempts to prove that, with just the right set of tools and a lot of money, one wealthy entrepreneur can paint a Vermeer. We discuss the bleak, empty void that is Penn & Teller's view of art. See Luke at the Toronto International Festival of Authors on September 27 - https://festivalofauthors.ca/event/critical-conversation-new-working-class/ Check out Luke's book "The Dead Center" - https://www.orbooks.com/catalog/the-dead-center/

We mark Queen Elizabeth's passing by looking at towering work of royalist kitsch, THE KING'S SPEECH (2010). We discuss how this Oscar-winner humanizes the monarchy in order to uphold it. See Luke speak at the Toronto International Festival of Authors on September 27 - https://festivalofauthors.ca/event/critical-conversation-new-working-class/ Hear Will on Canadaland - https://www.canadaland.com/podcast/815-our-royals-our-elves/ Join us on Patreon for an extra episode every week - https://www.patreon.com/michaelandus

PATREON EXCLUSIVE EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/365-journeys-72120783 Luke finally returns to the podcast, and have we got a doozy of a movie for him. We return to the oeuvre of political scion Alexandra Pelosi and discuss DIARY OF A POLITICAL TOURIST (2004), a freewheeling account of the 2004 Democratic Party primary. It's both the worst and the best Alexandra Pelosi documentary we've watched yet... as well as the most elusive movie we've ever tried to find. This episode was made possible by Kyle Bridgett, who found a very rare movie. Check out his website: https://kylebridgett.com/ Kyle Bridgett's YouTube channel, Canonically Crumb: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0gm3vZynb5E&list=PLkZYyAJDZgAymetXARt7X8jmnzKM5U_nU&index=5&ab_channel=LittleCozyNostril

PATREON EXCLUSIVE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/71837828 At last - conservatives have made a movie about the Hunter Biden laptop scandal. Director Robert David (yes, the villain from Goonies) and Breitbart Media present MY SON HUNTER (2022), a feature film that alleges to expose the Bidens as an international crime family. Longtime friend of the show Chris Berube stops by to discuss why the biggest scandal is how damn boring this movie is.

Popularly known as "one of the worst movies ever made," Ed Wood's GLEN OR GLENDA? (1953) was a pioneering attempt at progressive cinematic treatment of trans issues. It's also a film at war with itself. We're joined by special guest Valerie Faye to discuss why this extraordinary film is cinema's greatest depiction of "closet mindset." Join Michael & Us on Patreon for an extra episode every week - https://www.patreon.com/michaelandus Check out Valerie's podcast The Odd Pod - https://anchor.fm/theoddpodd/episodes/ODD-PODD-CLASSIC---Missing-feat--Chris--Kurt-e1lt39g On Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/oddpodd Valerie on Twitter - https://twitter.com/StealingValerie Watch Glen or Glenda? - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OVR1JmmvGiA&ab_channel=BloodyVengeance

PATREON-EXCLUSIVE EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/71449739 In the mid-'90s, a car dealership in Texas offered contestants a chance to win a free truck if they could perform one feat of physical and mental agility: keep one hand on the truck for longer than anyone else. The documentary HANDS ON A HARDBODY (1997) captures the contest in all its agony. We're joined by John Semley to discuss what - if anything - this highly evocative document has to say about America.

One of the key films of Brazil's Cinema Novo movement, Glauber Rocha's masterpiece TERRA EM TRANSE aka ENTRANCED EARTH (1967) envisions a fictional Latin American country where the left- and right-wing parties both feed from the same trough, and asks what role art can play in revolution, if any. Friend-of-the- show Violet Lucca returns to place the film within the context of Brazil after the 1964 coup that led to decades of military dictatorship. "Revolutionary Lessons" by Robert Stamm - https://www.ejumpcut.org/archive/onlinessays/JC10-11folder/TerraTranseStam.html Check out Violet on The Harper's Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/the-harpers-podcast/id1405872370

PATREON EXCLUSIVE EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/360-hitch-in-71080314 A new book collection, A HITCH IN TIME, brings together a wide range of writings by Christopher Hitchens from before his 9/11-era neocon conversion. Returning once again to one of our favourite subjects, we discuss how the essays show Hitchens at his best, while also foreshadowing the negative qualities that would come to overwhelm his work. Luke also discussed the book on this week's episode of The Harper's Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/christopher-hitchens/id1405872370?i=1000577130158

The new documentary ALEX'S WAR (2022) seeks to "look past the caricature" of the Infowars gadfly Alex Jones. Your hosts find themselves disagreeing on the usefulness of this nonjudgmental profile of the notorious conspiracy theorist. Join us on Patreon for an extra episode every week: https://www.patreon.com/michaelandus

PATREON-EXCLUSIVE EPISODE - Join us on Patreon for an extra episode every week - https://www.patreon.com/posts/358-arc-of-70689387 A wonk who believed in incremental reform and parliamentary process, the Canadian NDP politician Stanley Knowles was a genuine socialist who earnestly embodies many of the qualities that we distrust in liberals. We watched STANLEY KNOWLES: IN WORD AND DEED (1987), and Luke discusses why he finds Knowles an inspirational figure in these troubled times.

Our Superdelegate patron tier was mad as hell that we hadn't yet discussed Sidney Lumet and Paddy Chayefsky's NETWORK (1976) and wasn't going to take it anymore. We watched an American classic and discovered that Howard Beale's famous speech isn't even the most important speech in the movie. Join us on Patreon for an extra episode every week - https://www.patreon.com/michaelandus

PATREON EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/70295935 We do our customary check-in on the Wetmovie1 gang, move on to the Canadian pundit class's response to the rise of Pierre Poilievre, before finally addressing the big question: what role to Tom Cruise and Jay Leno play in a post-9/11 world? Luckily, the great men have a few ideas of their own in two vintage speeches.

Many movies in the 1980s depicted American urban landscapes as lawless hellholes, but Paul Verhoeven's ROBOCOP (1987) was unique for locating the source of the problem in the corporate world. The Superdelegate patron tier has voted for us to watch one of the most beloved screen satires of all time, and we were happy to oblige. See cohost Will introduce a screening of Don't Let the Riverbeast Get You (2013) at Toronto's Fox Theatre on August 23 - https://www.foxtheatre.ca/movies/dont-let-the-riverbeast-get-you-10th-anniversary/ Order cohost Luke's book The Dead Center - https://www.orbooks.com/catalog/the-dead-center/ Join Michael & Us on Patreon for an extra episode every week - https://www.patreon.com/michaelandus

PATREON EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/70079242 COUNTER-STRIKE became a video game phenomenon. It also served as a laboratory for the exploitation of video game labor and the commodification trends that dominate the games industry and the broader internet today. On this episode, Luke is joined by beloved guest Alex Ross for a wide-ranging discussion of labour and the gaming industry. "How Counter-Strike Helped Shape the Future of Digital Capitalism" by Alex Ross - https://jacobin.com/2022/07/counter-strike-valve-live-service-mods-exploitation

In 1984, Godzilla rose from Tokyo Bay for the first time in nine years for THE RETURN OF GODZILLA. In 1985, an American distributor dramatically recut the movie into GODZILLA 1985. We're joined at long last by Important Cinema Club cohost Justin Decloux to discuss the many structural and ideological changes that were imposed upon Godzilla's big comeback. Join us on Patreon for an extra episode every week - https://www.patreon.com/michaelandus

PATREON EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/352-return-of-us-69623420 In the thrilling conclusion to our two-part mailbag episode, the listeners pummel us with a dizzying array of questions, leading us to discussions on subjects ranging from the current "multiverse" trend to whether or not podcasts count as activism (spoiler: they don't).

Alexandra Pelosi strikes again! In her documentary SAN FRANCISCO 2.0 (2015), the political scion turns her attention to her home city, gazing with awe upon the tech industry's sudden takeover while registering some tepid notes of ambivalence about the gentrification that has priced many longtime residents out. We discuss why, despite being Nancy Pelosi's daughter who regularly makes films for HBO, nobody seems to know about Alexandra Pelosi. Check out the Michael & Us Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/posts/69528022

PATREON EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/69344608 You had questions, we have answers. The hosts expound on a wide range of topics - everything from Stephen Harper to A24 to pornography to baked potatoes - in this, the first of a two-part mailbag episode.

Many people threatened to move to Canada when George W. Bush was re-elected in 2004, but the dramedy BLUE STATE (2007) imagines a character who actually did it. Many references to 2004-era liberal ephemera ensue, and the hosts of the Michael & Us podcast are sharply divided on this milquetoast indie starring Breckin Meyer and Anna Paquin.

PATREON EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/69021053 As a culture and politics podcast, we take seriously our responsibility to cover culture and politics. On this episode, we synthesize these two worlds powerfully, with discussion of... ✓ The Biden administration: what's going wrong? ✓ Kevin Smith and Clerks III ✓ Politico offers a new savior for the Democratic Party (hint: it's Jon Stewart)

Before he was an archconservative, David Mamet wrote a great play and movie about a group of salesmen grinding in a system where morality does not exist. Our Superdelegate patron tier has voted for us to discuss GLENGARRY GLEN ROSS (1992). Fuck you - THAT'S our name. PLUS: We say goodbye to Boris.

PATREON EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/346-bad-take-68662564 In these difficult times, the bad takes are flying fast and furious. To deal with the problem, we've staged a Bad Takes Olympics, where we discuss recent earth-shattering ideas from such heavyweights as Rob Reiner, Paul Mason, and Hans Zimmer. PLUS: the boys reminisce about a lost Toronto.

It's an extremely discouraging political moment for our neighbors in the United States, so we decided the time was right to finally examine one of the quintessential cinematic articulations of American exceptionalism, FORREST GUMP (1994). Is life, in fact, like a box of chocolates? We investigate. "The Man Who Loved Presidents: On John Meacham" by Thomas Frank - https://harpers.org/archive/2021/07/jon-meacham-thomas-frank-soul-of-america/ "Tom Hanks Explains It All" by David Marchese - https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2022/06/13/magazine/tom-hanks-interview.html

The Buzz Lightyear origin movie LIGHTYEAR (2022) has become a cultural lightning-rod in the right-wing moral panic over "grooming." We discuss this controversy (which is ridiculous, by the way), and then discuss the movie, in which we can learn a little bit about how the Disney Company views itself. Support the National Network of Abortion Funds - https://abortionfunds.org/ Abortion Funds in Every State - https://donations4abortion.com/ The Repro Legal Defense Fund - https://reprolegaldefensefund.org/

PATREON EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/68234387 In 1930, Luis Buñuel and Salvador Dalí set out to make a barbed attack on bourgeois society and its institutions. The result, L'AGE D'OR (1930), nearly got its financiers excommunicated from the Catholic Church. We discuss a classic of surrealist cinema. PLUS: We discuss the U.S. Supreme Court's repeal of Roe v. Wade. Donate to abortion funds in every state: https://donations4abortion.com/

PATREON EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/342-black-friday-68045387 In 1970, the October Crisis in Quebec led to the first government-mandated suspension of civil liberties in Canada during peacetime. The documentary ACTION: THE OCTOBER CRISIS OF 1970 (1974) gives us opportunity discuss the conditions of French/English Canadian tensions that led to the kidnapping of two politicians by a militant Quebec separatist group, and the long shadow that this brief period of martial law has cast on Canada. PLUS: Yet again, we discuss that menace to society, Tom Hanks.

Long before the "metaverse" loomed over us, David Cronenberg's EXISTENZ (1999) imagined a completely immersive virtual environment that is even less cozy than our own. We discuss the film's porous boundary between reality and unreality, and explain why Cronenberg is one of the few Canadian filmmakers who really "gets" Canada. PLUS: Looking back at a moral panic over right-wing art from the early '90s.

PATREON EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/67682775 With the beloved Canadian comedy troupe The Kids in the Hall currently in the midst of a comeback, we took a look at their sole feature-film spin-off. KIDS IN THE HALL: BRAIN CANDY (1996) is a satire of big-business and '90s wellness culture that, seen today, shows how wellness culture has evolved. PLUS: Jimmy Savile, Joe Biden, and the new elite style of tweeness.

Our Superdelegate patron tier has voted for us to discuss Mike Judge's workplace satire OFFICE SPACE (1999), and it leads us down a long rabbit hole of remembering bad work experiences. PLUS: We take a fond look back on the all-time classic Man of the Year (2006)

PATREON EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/67404387 We recap the recent provincial election in our home of Ontario, Canada (long story short: more bad news), discuss movie-of-the-moment TOP GUN: MAVERICK (2022), and pay our respects to Chuck Schumer's imaginary friends.

What is a quickly-made, low-effort documentary like ONE NATION UNDER TRUMP (2016) good for? Not a lot. But one thing that this ridiculous pro-Trump hagiography provided us with was a chance to marinate for long, unbroken stretches of time in the 45th president's rhetorical style. We made some unexpected discoveries about how his distinctive way of speaking led him to the presidency.

PATREON EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/66990683 The new Netflix special RICKY GERVAIS: SUPERNATURE (2022) affirms what we already knew: that the formerly very funny Ricky Gervais is funny no more. Where did his trajectory go wrong? We come up with some theories.

PATREON EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/335-songs-of-66874909 U2 (and specifically Bono) are the uncontested world leaders in "fusion philanthropy," and the hagiographic documentary U2: A ROCK CRUSADE (2009) celebrates this legacy uncritically. So it falls upon us, as usual, to provide the criticism. PLUS: our institutions are failing us, and the institution of comedy is no exception.

Dinesh D'Souza believes he has uncovered shocking proof that the Democratic Party stole the 2020 election in 2000 MULES (2022), a documentary so shoddy that even right-wing media is hesitant to publicize it. We follow the trail of Dinesh's conspiracy theory to its inevitable endpoint: a contempt for democracy itself. PLUS: we discuss the billionaire whose name is on everyone's lips, Elon Musk.

PATREON EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/66509310 In DELTA FARCE (2007), "blue collar" comedian Larry the Cable Guy goes to fight in Iraq, but winds up in Mexico. That's right, folks - it's another document from the Bush era. We discuss conservative comedy and touch on the legendary Larry/David Cross feud that tore a nation asunder. PLUS: Luke reveals a traumatic memory involving the Ninja Turtles.

The documentary WHITE NOISE (2020) follows three very prominent members of the alt-right (you'll be familiar with all of them, folks) as their fortunes rise and fall during the Trump era. We discuss the ethics of interviewing/"platforming" ideological enemies, the differing aesthetic styles of various alt-right personalities, and what happens to political "scenes" during periods of eclipse. PLUS: Luke takes stock of the Canadian Conservative leadership race, and Liam Neeson makes a movie about the U.S./Mexico border.