Michael and Us

We return to one of our perennial favourite topics, THE SIMPSONS, to consider two episodes from very different eras of its run: the legendary Season 4 banger "Kamp Krusty," and the hot-off-the-presses Season 36 ep "The Yellow Lotus." Which one earns our coveted Krusty Brand Seal of Approval? PLUS: We mark the passing of a Canadian broadcasting "pioneer."

PATREON-EXCLUSIVE EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/570-krusty-brand-115031151

Is Andrei Tarkovsky's STALKER (1979) about the Soviet Russia in which it was made? And if not, then where exactly is "The Zone"? We wade into one of the most forbidding cinematic objects of all time, but realize that the answer is only ever found within. PLUS: Justin Trudeau is historically unpopular - so why hasn't he stepped down?

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

"US Politics Has Reached a Dead End" by Luke Savage - https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/oct/19/trump-campaign-leaked-data-voters-elon-musk

"Revealed: Trump ground game in key states flagged as potentially fake" by Hugo Lowell - https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/oct/19/trump-campaign-leaked-data-voters-elon-musk

Our episode on Ivan's Childhood - https://www.patreon.com/posts/263-sculpting-in-55465791

Our episode on Solaris - https://www.patreon.com/posts/317-hunters-in-64139407

We were told my our Superdelegate patron tier that the direct-to-video sequel BRING IT ON: ALL OR NOTHING (2006) was a potent 2006 time capsule. Friends... they were right. PLUS: Al Pacino's finances, the fall of the Soviet Empire, and the sad tale of Victor J. Kemper.

PATREON-EXCLUSIVE EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/568-not-another-114599903

Five years after Joker because an era-defining cultural phenomenon, its sequel, JOKER: FOLIE A DEUX (2024), is the biggest flop of the year. We sifted through the wreckage to find a purposely abrasive object, and are split on its effectiveness.

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

TORONTO - See Luke speak at Progressive Publics: A Symposium Connecting Scholarship & Independent Media, November 8 - https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/progressive-publics-a-symposium-connecting-scholarship-independent-media-tickets-1051089455857

TORONTO - See Will introduce a screening of Fantasy Mission Force - https://www.foxtheatre.ca/movies/important-cinema-club-masterpiece-classics-fantasy-mission-force/

Is crime a disease? And have we possibly found the cure? We're always up for a right-wing action movie on this podcast, so it was about time we got to the irresistible Sylvester Stallone vehicle COBRA (1986).

First, Will reports on visiting that most American of landmarks, Graceland. Then, we take the temperature of the U.S. presidential election in its waning days, and learn some interesting facts about the "Canadian Victims of Communism" memorial. Finally, we discuss I'M FROM HOLLYWOOD (1989), a documentary about one of the greatest pieces of performance art of all time: the Andy Kaufman/Jerry Lawler wrestling feud.

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

ST. CATHARINE'S - See Luke moderate the book launch event for Shifting Gears: Canadian Autoworkers and the Changing Landscape of Labour Politics. Friday, October 11, 7pm, Niagara Artists Centre - https://www.ubcpress.ca/st-catharines-book-launch-for-shifting-gears

TORONTO - See Will introduce a rare screening of the Jackie Chan film Fantasy Mission Force. Tuesday, November 5, 7pm, Fox Theatre - https://www.foxtheatre.ca/movies/important-cinema-club-masterpiece-classics-fantasy-mission-force/

"The #Resistance Is Back. Be Afraid." by Katherine Krueger - https://www.thenation.com/article/politics/resistance-kamala-harris-online/

Kaufman and Lawler on Letterman - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FL9PGJslS6A&t=1s&ab_channel=Letterman

The new Netflix documentary WHAT'S NEXT: THE FUTURE WITH BILL GATES (2024) positions the Microsoft founder as "one of the good billionaires." But what are the limits to his brand of philanthropy? And how neutral and objective are these documentaries on the big streaming platforms? Luke welcomes Tim Schwab (author of The Bill Gates Problem: Reckoning with the Myth of the Good Billionaire) to discuss why he declined to participate in the documentary, and what he uncovered about its making.

Buy The Bill Gates Problem by Tim Schwab - https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250291431/thebillgatesproblem

"Why I refused to participate in the Netflix docu-series on Bill Gates" by Tim Schwab - https://timschwab.substack.com/p/why-i-refused-to-participate-in-the

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

In the exciting conclusion of our discussion of David Lynch's MULHOLLAND DRIVE (2001), Betty becomes Diane and fantasy merges with reality... or perhaps "reality" and "fantasy" are never whole extricable?

PATREON-EXCLUSIVE EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/563-mulholland-2-113260819

Movies can transport us to strange and wonderful dreamworld, including a world where a UK Prime Minister faces real risk of arrest from the International Court of Justice. From director Roman Polanski comes the greatest movie ever made about pesky extradition treaties: THE GHOST WRITER (2010).

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

Guy Maddin retrospective in LA - https://www.americancinematheque.com/series/guy-maddin-an-american-cinematheque-retrospective/

Hollywood produces dreams on an industrial scale, but it also feeds our own dreams back to us. And no movie has ever understood Hollywood better than David Lynch's MULHOLLAND DRIVE (2001). In the first of a two-part discussion, we dissect David Lynch's masterpiece. PLUS: The hallmarks of bad conservative, left-wing, and liberal writing, as seen through the lens of one Mr. Jordan Peterson.

PATREON-EXCLUSIVE EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/112719438