Michael and Us

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.

PATREON EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/66228452 Our Superdelegate patron tier has voted for us to discuss the hagiographic documentary RBG (2018), a shamelessly hagiographic documentary about the liberal Supreme Court justice who we all hope manages to live to the end of Trump's presidency. We discuss two things that are bad: political personality cults, and the United States Supreme Court.

THE TRUMAN SHOW (1998) is widely remembered as a prescient film that anticipates the rise of social media and reality TV. But how accurate was its forecast, really? And what, exactly, was it saying? And hey - did the audience watch Truman go to the bathroom? We investigate. "The Audience is Us" by Jonathan Rosenbaum - https://jonathanrosenbaum.net/2021/07/the-audience-is-us/

The Monkees were a prefabricated pop band who didn't play their own instruments and didn't get much respect. But in 1968, they teamed with director Bob Rafelson and a young writer named Jack Nicholson to take charge of their image with HEAD (1968), a corrosive satire that asks: what do the Monkees have in common with the Vietnam War? Donate to an abortion fund: https://www.thecut.com/article/donate-abortion-fund-roe-v-wade-how-to-help.html

PATREOON EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/328-terminally-65881035 Three of Louis Theroux's most recent documentaries (SHOOTING JOE EXOTIC, PORN'S ME TOO, EXTREME AND ONLINE) give us ample opportunity to discuss some of the key issues of our time: the online right, the changing world of porn, and our old friend the Tiger King. PLUS: Did you know that Netflix had its own news website???

Australian land and British institutions mix uncomfortably in Peter Weir's PICNIC AT HANGING ROCK (1975). We speculate from our Canadian vantage points why this story has become one of the iconic documents of Australia's national identity. PLUS: the boys cannot stop talking about Bob Dylan! "Picnic at Hanging Rock: What We See and What We Seem" by Megan Abbott - https://www.criterion.com/current/posts/3202-picnic-at-hanging-rock-what-we-see-and-what-we-seem

PATREON EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/65549860 In the new comedy special BILL MAHER: #ADULTING (2022), the Real Time host offers his usual state-of-the-union address on society's ills, but focuses mainly on cancel culture. Folks, this ranks as one of the most unpleasant things we've watched for the podcast, so please enjoy. PLUS: checking the temperature on Bernie 2024, and sordid thoughts on the Johnny Depp trial.

PATREON EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/65315324 Akira Kurosawa's HIGH AND LOW (1963) begins as a kidnapping thriller, turns into a police procedural, and evolves into a survey of Japan circa 1963 from high to low. We discuss one of the greatest director's greatest films. PLUS: We answer the question that has been tearing Twitter apart: is David Lynch a conservative filmmaker???

The 1969 documentary WHAT'S LEFT? captures the Canadian left (and more specifically, Canada's New Democratic Party) being pulled in two directions: by an emerging, student-led generation of radical activists, and an older political class that has either grown pragmatic or complacent depending on who you ask. We discuss the history of the Canadian left, and what has both changed and remained the same in the 50+ years since the film. PLUS: We catch an acute case of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them fever!!! Watch the documentary What's Left?- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JRzNoaEw3xM&ab_channel=tcn1915

PATREON EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/65062325 Will, a longtime Star Wars skeptic, revisits THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK (1980) in a version that recaptures what it looked like in 1980. Luke, a longtime Star Wars fan, joins him for a discussion on the role that context, texture, and technology play in making a beloved movie beloved. PLUS: a reading from the Al Goldstein archives!

A state-of-the-art Russian submarine has gone rogue. Is it about to launch an unprovoked nuclear attack on the United States? We finally delve into the world of right-wing legend Tom Clancy and his signature character Jack Ryan with the blockbuster film adaptation of THE HUNT FOR RED OCTOBER (1990). PLUS: Winston Churchill predicts the future!

The Superdelegate patron tier has voted for us to discuss AKIRA (1988), the groundbreaking anime classic. We hash over the film's vision of a future-dystopia, finding elements both unique to 1988 and applicable to all times. PLUS: the new Amazon union in Staten Island, and checking the pulse of right-wing politics on Canada.

PATREON EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/64687009 Being a geriatric man who has joyless, bureaucratized sex with an army of women who hate you: is this the American dream? For Hugh Hefner, it apparently was. We discuss the new documentary series SECRETS OF PLAYBOY, the Playboy phenomenon more generally, and the ugliness behind Hefner's tackiness. PLUS: Nintendo 64 memories, and an inevitable discussion of the Will Smith thing.

Jack Lemmon and James Garner star as two one-term presidents - one Democratic, one Republican - who go on a wacky adventure in the Grumpy Old Men rip-off MY FELLOW AMERICANS (1996). We stare into the deep void of this thuddingly unfunny political comedy and once again extract ideology. PLUS: alarming developments in the world of Russian Ultranationalism.

PATREON EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/64335664 On this very special episode, we focus on the cultural hotspots of our home city of Toronto. We discuss beloved music venue the El Mocambo, eccentric alternative-film exhibitor R*g H*rtt, and gone-but-not-forgotten novelty restaurant Garfield Eats.

The great Homer Simpson once said, "What is mind? No matter. What is matter? Never mind." In that spirit, we watched Andrei Tarkovsky's masterpiece SOLARIS (1972), which imagines outer space as a manifestation of our inner life. PLUS: checking in on that most important issue of our time, the Oscars.

PATREON EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/64007681 In the final months of his life, Walt Disney devoted much of his energy to designing a new kind of American city that he hoped would be a model for the future. Though E.P.C.O.T. ("Experimental Prototype City of Tomorrow") would never be fully realized, Disney's plan for a monopolistic controlled community remains a stunning vision of a world where capitalism outlasts democracy. We watched Disney's 1966 pitch film for his insane project. PLUS: how Martin Scorsese nearly cost Disney a relationship with China.

PATREON EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/63812658 Not unlike a Godfrey Ho ninja movie, this episode is a smorgasbord of disparate topics, including ✓ The 2022 Conservative Party of Canada leadership election ✓ Snowpiercer (2013) ✓ Steven Seagal ✓ More thoughts on Speechless (1994) ✓ Harvey Weinstein ✓ Yes... Godfrey Ho ninja movies

She's a Democrat. He's a Republican. They're speechwriters on warring campaigns... but can they fall in love??? That's the premise of the Michael Keaton/Geena Davis romcom SPEECHLESS (1994), which drew inspiration from the real-life romance between Clinton strategist James Carville and Bush advisor Mary Matalin. We discuss a movie that could only have been made in the '90s. "John Cleese Had Thoughts on Slavery at SXSW and It Was Super Cringey" by James Hibberd - https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/john-cleese-sxsw-panel-1235109668/ "Bedfellows Make Strange Politics" by Gore Vidal - https://www.nytimes.com/1994/09/18/books/bedfellows-make-strange-politics.html

PATREON EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/63521141 The Superdelegate Patreon tier has selected HIGH FIDELITY (2000), and this beloved film gives us ample opportunity to discuss such loaded topics as memory, physical media, niche culture, ageing, and hauntology. PLUS: we check in on Ukraine, and Luke reveals a movie-star pen-pal.

Some Batman movies have been called fascist, but THE BATMAN (2022) breaks new ground for the franchise by being lib. We wouldn't be a left-wing culture podcast if we didn't occasionally pick a new Batman movie from the lowest branch on the tree, so come join us as we chart the latest developments in the Caped Crusader's political evolution.

PATREON EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/63136108 We perform another deep-dive into our most beloved subject, the Wetmovie1 YouTube Universe, before transitioning to a matter of even greater importance: the crisis in Ukraine. PLUS: Joan Didion - yea or nay?

Eldon Hoke - better known to the world as "El Duce" - was one of the most notorious of the so-called "shock rockers" who frightened moralists during the George H.W. Bush years. His purposely rock-bottom art is explored in THE EL DUCE TAPES (2019), a culture war documentary in which the culture war is fought between different styles of reactionaries. PLUS: thoughts on draconian new Republican policies in Florida and Texas.

PATREON EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/309-everything-62861504 ✓ Luke's immersion into right-wing Trucker Convoy streams ✓ Howard Stern ✓ Roman Polanski ✓ Inventing Anna ✓ Jordan B. Peterson: songwriter

In another Superdelegate-selected episode, we discuss THE PEOPLE VS. LARRY FLYNT (1996), the hagiographic biopic of the Hustler Magazine publisher and First Amendment warrior. We discuss Flynt's politics, and the implications of his brand of civil libertarianism. PLUS: would you like to live in a town run by Disney? "Announcing Storyliving by Disney" - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4CVucnt46ww

PATREON EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/62510551 FIRST: we take a stroll down memory lane by remembering choice cuts from James Franco's brief and ignominious career as a Vice Magazine columnist. THEN: cohost Will reports on the new film JACKASS FOREVER and the boys discuss why the franchise has outlasted every culture war. PLUS: a further dive into the film criticism of Ed Koch.

What happens when the UK's Minister for International Development accidentally calls an inevitable war "unforeseeable"? We discuss Armando Iannucci's beloved political satire IN THE LOOP (2009) and what it says about the culture of spin in U.K. politics. PLUS: further developments in the Canadian trucker protest, and thoughts on that most important institution of all: the Oscars. Mayor Ed Koch's movie review show - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCl1C-jPg7L4nsHg6EVgAXvQ

PATREON EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/62221412 We discuss a range of important topics, including: ✓ The Trucker Convoy protest in Toronto ✓ Deep ideological readings of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and Ace Ventura: Pet Detective ✓ Turning Point: 9/11 and the War on Terror (2021) ✓ A host's unlikely appearance in a crossword puzzle!