Michael and Us

With Sylvester Stallone back in the news, we felt it was time to consider a movie that has become not just a consensus classic, but also a piece of American folklore, ROCKY (1976). What does this movie tell us about ourselves? Will, a lifelong Rocky fan, and Luke, who only just saw his first Rocky movie today, try to get some answers.

PATREON-EXCLUSIVE EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/michaelandus/posts/748-great-white-171798733

Eight years after the start of the Great Recession, and mere months before a certain New York real estate mogul ascended to the presidency, several of Hollywood's most elite liberals made a cinematic response to the financial crisis. We discuss Jodie Foster's MONEY MONSTER (2016), starring George Clooney as Jim Cramer. PLUS: Can monoculture be declining when all of culture is centralized? We ponder this question.

Check out the Michael & Us website and episode guide - https://michael-and-us.com/

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We continue our patriotic streak by finally tackling one of the true Canadian cultural institutions of our childhoods. In the days of the monoculture, they defined Canadian political satire. And to many, they were a little bit lame. But today we ask: can we reclaim THE ROYAL CANADIAN AIR FARCE? PLUS: What is "imperialist realism"?

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With Luke returning from a week in the Algonquin wilderness, we discuss another great Canadian outdoorsman, Troy Hurtubise. We discuss the cult documentary PROJECT GRIZZLY (1996), about one man's quixotic journey to create a big metal suit that withstand a bear attack. PLUS: On the right-of-centre politics of the reigning Canadian Liberal government, and a scene report from the Toronto International Film Festival.

Watch Project Grizzly online - https://www.nfb.ca/film/project_grizzly/

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Check out the official Michael & Us website and episode guide - https://michael-and-us.com/

Shortly before he was unceremoniously cancelled, Morgan Spurlock (y'all remember him?) directed a documentary about the legendary Simpsons episode "Homer at the Bat." Sort of. We discuss SPRINGFIELD OF DREAMS: THE LEGEND OF HOMER SIMPSON (2017). PLUS: It was the best of times, it was the worst of times in popular cinema - and our financial system is to blame.

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Check out our official website and episode guide - https://michael-and-us.com/

"Why Netflix Only Champions Crap" by Coleman Spilde - https://www.salon.com/2026/09/02/why-netflix-only-champions-crap-like-the-whisper-man-the-last-house/

Watch SPRINGFIELD OF DREAMS if you dare - https://vimeo.com/1131490789

We mark the quarter-century anniversary of 9/11 by watching the Adam Sandler film REIGN OVER ME (2007), a movie that proves that there's nothing Hollywood can't turn into grist for the mill. PLUS: Thoughts on the legacy of the late Gloria Steinem.

PATREON-EXCLUSIVE EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/michaelandus/posts/743-they-covet-169479427

In 1967, the creator of the modern conservative movement welcomed one of the most beloved comedians of all time to debate whether the world is fundamentally funny or tragic. The results may surprise you. We discuss William F. Buckley vs. Groucho Marx on FIRING LINE.

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Check out the Michael & Us website and episode guide - https://michael-and-us.com/

"Conservatism's Baton Twirler" by Osita Nwanevu - https://www.nybooks.com/articles/2025/09/25/conservatisms-baton-twirler-william-f-buckley/

"The MAGA Media Machine is Fracturing" by Stuart A. Thompson - https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/31/us/politics/trump-iran-economy-media-critics.html

"Know Your Enemy: Zohran, the Jews, and Reckoning with Gaza" by Matthew Sitman and Sam Adler-Bell - https://dissentmagazine.org/online_articles/know-your-enemy-zohran-the-jews-and-reckoning-with-gaza/

In 2004, the nominees for both American political parties attended the same Ivy League secret society. For years, whispers and conspiracy theories have followed Yale's "Skull & Bones." But whatever goes on in there, it's probably less funny than what's in THE SKULLS (2000).

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One of Europe's most revered filmmakers travels to America to make a movie about the times. But instead, he makes a movie out of time. We discuss Michelangelo Antonioni's legendary film maudit, ZABRISKIE POINT (1970)

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Check out the official Michael & Us website and episode guide - https://michael-and-us.com/

"Antonioni Defends Zabriskie Point," by Guy Flatley - https://www.nytimes.com/1970/02/22/archives/antonioni-defends-zabriskie-point-i-love-this-country.html

"Lets Talk About Zabriskie Point," by Michelangelo Antonioni - https://classic.esquire.com/article/1970/8/1/lets-talk-about-zabriskie-point

"Zabriskie Point," by Jonathan Rosenbaum - https://jonathanrosenbaum.net/2023/05/zabriskie-point-1984-review/

A few years after "hope and change" curdled, HOUSE OF CARDS offered a cynic's guide to the Beltway circa Obama's first term. We finally discuss a cultural phenomenon that reality would soon hopelessly outpace.

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Check out the Michael & Us website and episode guide - https://michael-and-us.com/

"Casual Viewing" by Will Tavlin - https://www.nplusonemag.com/issue-49/essays/casual-viewing/

"The Comfortable Problem of Mid TV" by James Poniewozik - https://www.nytimes.com/2024/04/27/arts/television/mid-tv.html