Michael and Us

The story goes that the flower-power generation abruptly ended when the Rolling Stones held a free concert at the Altamont Speedway that went disastrously wrong. We revisited GIMME SHELTER (1970) to interrogate the myth.

PATREON-EXCLUSIVE EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/117294338

The Canadian documentary FINAL OFFER (1985) captures the contentious negotiations between General Motors and the Canadian wing of the United Auto Workers Union. We consider the conditions that allowed a the union triumph against the backdrop of Reagan/Mulroney-era austerity. PLUS: Taking the temperature on Canada's economic "vibe-cession," and what does Trump's tariff threat to Canada actually mean?

Join us on Patreon for an extra episode every week - https://www.patreon.com/michaelandus

Watch FINAL OFFER - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JYNwc0KuGTc&ab_channel=NFB

"Democratic Elites Embraced the Identity Politics They Decry" by Branko Marcetic - https://jacobin.com/2024/11/democratic-elites-identity-politics-sanders

Check out "Shifting Gears: Canadian Autoworkers and the Changing Landscape of Labour Politics" - https://www.ubcpress.ca/shifting-gears

Our episode on the Flint Sit-Down Strike - https://www.patreon.com/posts/514-sit-down-sit-101918612

While Nicaragua was being ravaged by Reagan, Alex Cox used Hollywood money to make a sharp satire of American imperialism. The result, WALKER (1987), may have killed his career... but what a way to go! PLUS: Roger Ebert as the ür-liberal critic.

PATREON-EXCLUSIVE EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/116728650

With America suddenly lurching to the right on immigration, we checked to see where one prominent Democrat documentarian stood circa 2011. In CITIZEN USA: A 50 STATE ROAD TRIP (2011), our old friend Alexandra Pelosi travels to all 50 states, flattening all of them into the same paste. PLUS: Andy Warhol, Paul/Tyson, and the real legacy of Obama's 2008 campaign.

If you absolutely must watch Citizen USA, you can rent it here - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R3CYtUBofJk&ab_channel=YouTubeMovies

A rural village braces itself for development from the big city in Ryusuke Hamaguchi's EVIL DOES NOT EXIST (2024), a beautiful movie that rhymed with certain things we've been feeling lately about democracy, capitalism, freedom, and community. PLUS: We parse Toronto Life's list of the 50 most influential Torontonians of 2024, and explore the exciting world of Eric Roberts.

PATREON-EXCLUSIVE EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/116329275

A month before the 2024 U.S. presidential election, CNN aired a hagiographic documentary about one of the masterminds of the last 30 years of American politics. In the aftermath of a disastrous election for Democrats, we watch CARVILLE: WINNING IS EVERYTHING, STUPID! (2024) to learn how the Beltway was thinking about itself before everything came crashing down. PLUS: Get ready for the most riveting conversation about bike lanes in Toronto, Ontario you'll hear all year.

Join us on Patreon for an extra episode every week - https://www.patreon.com/michaelandus

For over 50 years, documentary filmmaker Tony Buba has chronicled the decline - but also the people, places, and everyday poetry - of his hometown of Braddock, Pennsylvania. Recently we watched his best-known film, LIGHTNING OVER BRADDOCK: A RUSTBOWL FANTASY (1988), and fell in love with it. Today, we're pleased to welcome Buba on the show to discuss the full scope of his career, including such films as SWEET SAL (1979), BETTY'S CORNER CAFE (1976), J. ROY: NEW AND USED FURNITURE (1974), and more.

PATREON-EXCLUSIVE EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/115813173

Our episode on LIGHTNING OVER BRADDOCK - https://soundcloud.com/michael-and-us/549-end-of-the-iron-cafe

We recommend this comprehensive Blu-Ray collection of Tony Buba's work - https://kinolorber.com/product/lightning-over-braddock-and-collected-shorts-the-films-of-tony-buba-blu-ray

Watch SWEET SAL - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aiuT9Zei81c

Watch J. ROY: NEW AND USED FURNITURE - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wef3Zqq9qTw&t=208s&ab_channel=AlphaRomero

Watch THE BARBER OF NEW KENSINGTON - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MyLyJ2f9278&t=2s&ab_channel=braddockfilms

Learn more about Tony Buba - https://braddockfilms.com/

Oh lord almighty, when will we be rid of this man? Apparently not for another four years at least. We ring in the latest chapter of this neverending "Trump Era" with the new biopic/origin story THE APPRENTICE (2024).

Join us on Patreon for an extra episode every week - https://www.patreon.com/michaelandus

"This Time We Have to Hold the Democratic Party Elite Responsible for This Catastrophe" by Jeet Heer - https://www.thenation.com/article/politics/democratic-party-elite-responsible-catastrophe/

"Democrats chose backing a genocide over defeating Trump" by Adam Johnson - https://therealnews.com/democrats-chose-backing-a-genocide-over-defeating-trump

On the day of the United States presidential election, let's look back at The Most Important Election Of Our Lifetimes. That's right, we're talking about 2004. We were happy to join the boys at Remember Shuffle to discuss all things Bush v. Kerry and the only presidential election since 1988 in which a Republican candidate won the popular vote. Now watch this drive!

PATREON BONUS - https://www.patreon.com/posts/115413841

Check out Remember Shuffle - https://linktr.ee/remembershuffle

With a dreary United States presidential election covering every surface, we search for some solace in politics from the past. Early in the Thatcher era in 1981, the beloved left-wing Labour MP Tony Benn launched a populist campaign to become his party's deputy leader, and almost won. We watch a documentary from the period, BENN'S BANDWAGON (1981), and ask: Was the conservative wave of the 1980s really inevitable?

Join us on Patreon for an extra episode every week - https://www.patreon.com/michaelandus

Watch "Benn's Bandwagon" here - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-e4MWekQKZE&t=2s&ab_channel=ModernLonelyTV

Our previous Tony Benn episode - https://www.patreon.com/posts/209-tony-benn-47399362