Michael and Us

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. Join us on Patreon for an extra episode every week - https://patreon.com/michaelandus 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). PATREON-EXCLUSIVE EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/michaelandus/posts/741-gentlemanly-168595662

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

We turn our attention to a bona fide cultural phenomenon and ask: where do Homer's The Odyssey and Christopher Nolan's THE ODYSSEY (2026) intersect and diverge? PATREON-EXCLUSIVE EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/michaelandus/posts/738-odysseus-and-167166546

Like Anderson Cooper before us, we catch up on the news! We discuss the ups and downs of the recent senate primaries in the U.S. PLUS: What do Alex Jones and Goop have in common? And the unlikely story of the world's greatest Jerry Lewis impersonator. TORONTO: Join us at the Toronto premiere of CHUNKS on September 1 at the Paradise Theatre. We will be participating in an onstage discussion with Amber A'Lee Frost and Nate Fisher - https://paradiseonbloor.com/movies/chunks-toronto-premiere/ Join us on Patreon for an extra episode every week - https://patreon.com/michaelandus "Infogoop" by Joshua Citarella - https://joshuacitarella.substack.com/p/infogoop Preorder "American Socialist: The Life & Legacy of Eugene V. Debbs" - https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/American-Socialist/Shawn-Gude/9781668056738 Preorder "Your Time is Now: The Sammy Petrillo Story" - https://feralhouse.com/product/your-time-is-now/

When the financial crisis hit and Americans were losing their homes, one movie had the courage to suggest: have you considered going to community college and dating Julia Roberts? We discuss LARRY CROWNE (2011), a rare directorial offering from Tom Hanks. PATREON-EXCLUSIVE EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/michaelandus/posts/736-larry-crowne-166250639

Did you know that a private, monopolistic, unaccountable, and socially conservative organization has free reign to define the limits of artistic expression in the United States? We discuss Kirby Dick's expose of the MPAA and its ratings system, THIS FILM IS NOT YET RATED (2006), and how (and how not to) combat censorship. PLUS: Ebeneezer, the original bad-boy of Tinseltown, is back. Join us on Patreon for an extra episode every week - https://patreon.com/michaelandus Check out the Michael & Us website and episode guide - https://michael-and-us.com/

To sustain the illusion of America, you need to compartmentalize or deny a lot of violence. We discuss David Cronenberg's existentialist masterpiece A HISTORY OF VIOLENCE (2005). PLUS: We mark the passing of the so-called "Godfather of the New Right," Jim Goad. Join us on Patreon for an extra episode every week - https://patreon.com/michaelandus Check out the Michael & Us website and episode guide - https://michael-and-us.com/

So beyond being the famous turtleneck guy, what exactly did Steve Jobs do during his long tenure at Apple? According to Aaron Sorkin and Danny Boyle's STEVE JOBS (2015), he did... everything and nothing. We discuss a Great Man biopic from a writer who truly believes in Great Men. PATREON-EXCLUSIVE EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/michaelandus/posts/732-bicycle-for-164653829

From back in an era when Ricky Gervais was widely considered funny, he cashed all his chips on a New Atheism-themed studio comedy built around an incoherent premise. We dig up THE INVENTION OF LYING (2009) just to bury it again. PLUS: Reporting from the smoky-aired hellscape that is Southwestern Ontario. Join us on Patreon for an extra episode every week - https://patreon.com/michaelandus Check out the Michael & Us website and episode guide - https://michael-and-us.com/

Jacques Tati rebuilt Paris from the ground up - and bankrupted himself in the process - to make his masterpiece PLAYTIME (1967), a gentle satire of ultra-modern postwar France that has a certain affection for what it's satirizing. We discuss the film that couldn't quite kill Monsieur Hulot. PATREON-EXCLUSIVE EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/michaelandus/posts/730-malaise-of-164033227

Like 'em or not, Angel Studios have emerged as the only explicitly right-of-centre movie company that knows what movies look like. But does their new historical drama YOUNG WASHINGTON (2026) meet that minimum standard of quality? We marked America's 250th birthday by heading to our local multiplex and hanging out with a Founding Father. Join us on Patreon for an extra episode every week - https://patreon.com/michaelandus Check out the official Michael & Us website/episode guide - https://michael-and-us.com/

The very same year as Parasite, one of Hollywood's most accomplished filmmakers tried to take on the corrupt financial system, with less-than-spectacular results. We discuss Steven Soderbergh's answer to the Panama Papers scandal, THE LAUNDROMAT (2019). Join us on Patreon for an extra episode every week - https://patreon.com/michaelandus Check out the Michael & Us website and database - https://michael-and-us.com/ Listen to Luke on "Pod Casty for Me" - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-laundromat-2019-with-luke-savage/id1663139827?i=1000775312181

One of the most popular movies on the streaming channels this week is a low-budget, far-right action movie starring a disgraced actor and directed by one of worst filmmakers of all time. We ask the question: does anyone actually like Uwe Boll's CITIZEN VIGILANTE (2026)? PLUS: Is a left-wing Tea Party finally here? PATREON-EXCLUSIVE EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/michaelandus/posts/727-uwe-162855211

If you want to know if we're alone in the universe, who ya gonna call? We welcome back longtime friend of the show Chris Berube to discuss DAN AYKROYD UNPLUGGED ON UFOS (2005), a documentary that is, incredibly, not a bit. Join us on Patreon for an extra episode every week - https://patreon.com/michaelandus Check out the official Michael & Us website and episode guide - https://michael-and-us.com/ Mike Bullard's beer promo fail - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3iXgbWVcXFs Dan Aykroyd's insane Crystal Skull vodka commercial - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wwJmNaR_4hk

We catch up on the news - including the long-awaited ouster of Keir Starmer in the U.K., the slow death of the CBC in Canada, and the DSA victories in New York. Then, Will offers a report on the Cinema Shift Festival, an event ominously described as "Canada's First Curated AI Narrative Film Festival." So just how good (or bad) are AI-generated short films nowadays? Do real filmmakers have anything to fear? The answer may not surprise you. PATREON-EXCLUSIVE EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/michaelandus/posts/725-artificially-162311924

At the long-awaited behest of our Superdelegate patron tier, we look back one of the landmarks of 2000s-era Indie Twee, LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE (2006)... and find a film that embodies that Second-Term Bush Era like few others. Join us on Patreon for an extra episode every week - https://patreon.com/michaelandus Check out the new Michael & Us website and episode guide - https://michael-and-us.com/ Check out Will's new zine The Journal of Stoogeological Studies Vol. 2 - https://www.amazon.com/Journal-Stoogeological-Studies-Vol/dp/B0H3QDT32K/ TORONTO: Check out Will's Journal of Stoogeological Studies event at Eyesore Cinema on Tuesday, June 30 - https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/the-journal-of-stoogeological-studies-vol-2-zine-launch-party-registration-1991290645926

It's the late 1990s, and your kids are being terrorized by the greatest menace to ever hit the schoolyard... steroids. We welcome Adam Johnson (of the Citations Needed podcast) to walk us through THE SUBSTITUTE 3: WINNER TAKES ALL (1999), the third entry in the beloved direct-to-video action franchise about murdering teenagers. PATREON-EXCLUSIVE EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/michaelandus/posts/723-accept-no-w-161527620

Across this podcast's long existence, we have attempted to give you a magisterial study of the art and politics of the 2000s. And no comprehensive study of that time would be complete without Jerry Seinfeld's BEE MOVIE (2007). So here, friends, is what happens when the worker bees of the world unite. Join us on Patreon for an extra episode every week - http://patreon.com/michaelandus Check out the brand new Michael & Us online database and episode guide - https://michael-and-us.com/

After 25 years of conservative political dominance, the indie black comedy THE LAST SUPPER (1996) asked: should liberals just try killing their political opponents? We drive our DeLorean back to the '90s and analyze a very particular moment in Gen-X political comedy. PATREON-EXCLUSIVE EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/michaelandus/posts/721-tedious-slog-160912726

In the year 2000, Al Gore conceded a presidential election he won to George W. Bush in attempt to save the legitimacy of American institutions. Safe to say he succeeded in that goal. We discuss Jay Roach's RECOUNT (2008), a star-studded dramatization of the stolen election that kicked off the New American Century. Introducing the Michael & Us website/database - https://michael-and-us.com/ Full episode guide - https://michael-and-us.com/episodes

In about 10 short years, Star Wars has gone from Hollywood's top franchise to a summer box office also-ran. We checked out STAR WARS: THE MANDALORIAN AND GROGU (2026) to try to understand the decline. PATREON-EXCLUSIVE EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/160203437

Like all empires, the Hollywood studio system had its decadent stage. We discuss Joel and Ethan Coen's HAIL, CAESAR! (2016), which pits an idealogue for the Hollywood studio system against a cabal of communist writers. PLUS: We discuss The Fall of the House of Colbert, and a hot new Washington Post podcast that gets "biz-zay." Join us on Patreon for an extra episode every week - https://www.patreon.com/michaelandus Listen to Luke discuss the future of the left with Jacobin founding editor Bhaskar Sunkara - https://www.lukewsavage.com/p/time-for-socialism-ft-bhaskar-sunkara

As a Toronto-based podcast, we are duty-bound to cover Matt Johnson and Jay McCarrol's NIRVANNA THE BAND THE SHOW THE MOVIE (2025). We travel back to 2008 the discuss one of the most requested movies in our show's history. PATREON-EXCLUSIVE EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/717-nirvanna-pod-159525773

We keep bringing up the beloved American film critic Roger Ebert over and over again, and we've decided it's time to finally exorcise this demon. Before we put Roger in the penalty box for a while, we're going to put our accumulated knowledge to good use and play a long-threatened game: The Roger Ebert Mystery Box Challenge, in which we attempt to predict his reviews for movies we've covered on this podcast. The balcony is open! Join us on Patreon for an extra episode every week - patreon.com/michaelandus

One of the pillars of the cursed "Everything is Connected" trend of the 2000s, Alejandro González Iñárritu's BABEL (2006) offers a de-politicized look at our global village. Josh Lewis (of Sleazoids podcast fame) fills in for Luke to discuss one very heavy exampe of White Elephant Art. Join us on Patreon for an extra episode every week - https://www.patreon.com/michaelandus Check out Sleazoids - https://www.sleazoidspodcast.com/ If you're in Toronto on June 8, 2026, come see Josh present Michael Mann's Blackhat at the Paradise - https://paradiseonbloor.com/movies/blackhat-directors-cut/

After too long a drought, we return to the writing of Armond White, the legendarily contrarian conservative film critic (currently with the National Review) whose writing has texture like no one else's. We focus on his recent defense of Pete Hegseth via Quentin Tarantino's Pulp Fiction. PLUS: Is Remains of the Day a #grindset classic? PATREON-EXCLUSIVE EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/714-pulp-158271632

A year into the Great Recession, one film was brave enough to ask, "But what about the corporate consultants?" We discuss Jason Reitman's onetime critical darling UP IN THE AIR (2009), a film that invites us to have sympathy for the downsizers. Join us on Patreon for an extra episode every week - https://www.patreon.com/michaelandus

In a special collaboration with Bob Mackey and Henry Gilbert of the Talking Simpsons and What A Cartoon! podcasts, we discuss Satoshi Kon's PERFECT BLUE (1997), the anime classic that imagined a world in which obsessive fan culture stoked by the internet leads to the dissolution of one J-pop star's reality. Would you believe that people have called it prescient? PATREON-EXCLUSIVE EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/712-perfect-blue-157652359

He's the first YouTube billionaire, and he did it by being more algorithm than man. We discuss Mr. Beast, and the new flesh. PLUS: There's a hot new content creator on the block, and his name is... Bob Dylan? Join us on Patreon for an extra episode every week - https://www.patreon.com/michaelandus "Bob Dylan’s Mysterious AI Experiment: Something Is Happening Here, But We Don’t Know What It Is" by Ian Grant - https://www.gq.com/story/bob-dylans-mysterious-experiment "How a kid cracked YouTube’s secret code" by Lucas Shaw and Mark Bergen - https://www.detroitnews.com/story/life/2021/01/01/how-kid-cracked-youtubes-secret-code/4100868001/ "The Beast Within Capitalism" by Nathan J. Robinson - https://www.currentaffairs.org/news/2023/02/the-beast-within-capitalism "The Wasteland" by Luke Savage - https://www.lukewsavage.com/p/the-wasteland The specific Mr. Beast video we watched - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0e3GPea1Tyg&t=1s

Spring has sprung, which means we're talkin' softball. After briefly ruminating on the beauty of the game, and checking the pulse of our beloved Jays, we discuss one of the best baseball movies of recent (or any) years: EEPHUS (2024), a very funny meditation on friendship, tradition, and the passage of time. PATREON-EXCLUSIVE EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/157037597

We once again travel back to the dark heart of the Bush era by discussing one of the biggest cultural events of the 2000s. Ron Howard's THE DA VINCI CODE (2006) adapted Dan Brown's turgid bestseller into an even more turgid blockbuster. Join us on Patreon for an extra episode every week - https://www.patreon.com/michaelandus

We recap a contentious week between the Trump Administration and the Vatican before moving on to discuss our own true lord and savior, Snake Plissken. At the request of our Superdelegate patron tier, we discuss John Carpenter's immortal tribute to da greatest city in da world, ESCAPE FROM NEW YORK (1981). PLUS: It's just like old times... Michael Moore has angered the right. Join us on Patreon for an extra episode every week - https://www.patreon.com/michaelandus "The Apocalypse is Here" by Michael Moore - https://www.michaelmoore.com/p/the-apocalypse-is-here

Alright what are we talking about today? PATREON-EXCLUSIVE EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/707-chinese-155905797

No era hits like the late-late-late-Clinton Era. We discuss the shameless Oscar bait that didn't catch anything, PAY IT FORWARD (2000), in which a precocious boy creates a pyramid scheme for kindness. Join us on Patreon for an extra episode every week - https://www.patreon.com/michaelandus TORONTO - See Luke interview Jacobin Magazine founder Bhaskar Sunkara at the 2025 Ellen Meiskins Wood Lecture. Wednesday, April 22 at 6pm, Toronto Metropolitan University, George Vari Engineering and Computer Centre. Get tickets: https://broadbentinstitute.ca/events/2026-ellen-meiksins-wood-lecture/

In the tumultuous election cycle of 2019-2020, Alexandra Pelosi once again travelled the country to take Uncle Sam's temperature. So far, so typical. But the movie she emerged with, AMERICAN SELFIE: ONE NATION SHOOTS HERSELF (2020), ended up being her darkest, bleakest vision yet. PLUS: Luke sings the praises of James Joyce's Ulysses! PATREON-EXCLUSIVE EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/705-filling-with-155264651

At the height of the Reagan Era, a simple man from abroad came to the heart of liberal America and reminded New Yorkers of traditional values. He also had trouble figuring out how a bidet worked. Folks, it's the CROCODILE DUNDEE (1986) episode. PLUS: Stephen Marche on AI, and Avi Lewis wins the NDP leadership race. Join us on Patreon for an extra episode every week - https://www.patreon.com/michaelandus "How Did This Get Made" podcast with the writer of Crocodile Dundee in Los Angeles - https://www.earwolf.com/episode/crocodile-dundee-in-los-angeles/

the past is always present - but especially at a Christmas dinner party in Dublin at the turn of the 20th century. We discuss John Huston's THE DEAD (1987), his film adaptation of the great final story from Joyce's Dubliners. PATREON-EXCLUSIVE EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/703-dubliners-154688385

He was one of the biggest recording artists of his time, but it took Hollywood to make him safe for your parents. We discuss the Eminem vehicle 8 MILE (2002), a true landmark of millennial culture. PLUS: Bidding a fond (?) farewell to Robert Mueller. Join us on Patreon for an extra episode every week - https://www.patreon.com/michaelandus For two weeks we're offering HEAVILY DISCOUNTED PAID SUBSCRIPTIONS. Use code 22DE3 to get 50% for your first month.

Is life worth living? That's the question at the core of Abbas Kiarostami's masterpiece TASTE OF CHERRY (1997), which raises another question: is death really such a good option if you'll never again experience the taste of cherries? PLUS: Checking in on the leader of Canada's conservative movement, Pierre Poilievre. PATREON-EXCLUSIVE EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/701-taste-of-153968176

Towards the end of the George W. Bush administration, Fox News tried to create a right-wing equivalent of The Daily Show. It became a legendary failure. To celebrate our 700th episode, we discuss THE 1/2 HOUR NEWS HOUR (2007), a truly foundational piece of right-wing culture. Join us on Patreon for an extra. episode every week - https://www.patreon.com/michaelandus For two week's we're offering HEAVILY DISCOUNTED PAID SUBSCRIPTIONS for two weeks, beginning Saturday, March 21 from 9am Eastern Standard Time. Use code 22DE3 to get 50% for your first month. Our classic episode on Air America - https://soundcloud.com/michael-and-us/77-left-of-the-dial

Amazon spent $75 million and resurrected Brett Ratner to curry favor with the incoming Trump administration. The result is MELANIA (2026), a highly airbrushed portrait of the First Lady. We watched Melania Trump board limousines and airplanes for 104 gruelling minutes and lived to tell the tale. PATREON-EXCLUSIVE EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/153296412

What is it actually like to live as a manosphere influencer? We discuss LOUIS THEROUX: INSIDE THE MANOSPHERE (2026), in which the veteran British documentary presenter travels to the dark heart of Miami. PLUS: Taking the temperature of the Canadian left. Join us on Patreon for an extra episode every week - https://www.patreon.com/michaelandus

The Daily Wire and Adam Carolla teamed up to make a conservative answer to Family Guy and The Simpsons. God help us, we discuss the short-lived right-wing animated show MR. BIRCHUM (2024). God damn this one was rough. PATREON-EXCLUSIVE EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/697-donkey-152831913

As a grotesque war engulfs the Middle East, it's time to look back at how we got here. Will is joined by longtime friend of the show Violet Lucca to discuss END OF EMPIRE (1985), a British documentary series on the fizzling-out of Britain's colonial adventure. We focus on the episodes about Palestine and Iran. Join us on Patreon for an extra episode every week - https://www.patreon.com/c/michaelandus End of Empire Chapter 6: Palestine - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ziwuaWLy8A End of Empire Chapter 7: Iran - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xhCgJElpQEQ

In Yorgos Lanthimos's BUGONIA (2025), an internet-addled conspiracy guy kidnaps a pharmaceutical CEO girlboss, in a story that ultimately asks: is the human race worth saving? PLUS: We discuss the U.S. and Israel's war in Iran, and also interrogate the most pressing issue of our time: has Jim Carrey been killed and replaced by a clone? PATREON-EXCLUSIVE EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/152162364

What would happen if the Christian movie industry tried to make its own Everything Everywhere All at Once? Brother, you don't have to imagine! We discuss Angel Studios' THE SHIFT (2023), starring our favourite actor, Neal McDonough. PLUS: We check Keir Starmer's pulse after last week's UK by-election, and assess the looming Warner/Paramount merger. Join us on Patreon for an extra episode every week - https://www.patreon.com/michaelandus "The Ground Game is Back" by Grace Blakeley - https://substack.com/home/post/p-189343412 "Starmer is Driving Labour to Disaster" by Jon Trickett - https://tribunemag.co.uk/2026/02/starmer-is-driving-labour-to-disaster

In 1968, Frederick Wiseman embedded with the Kansas City Police Department. He emerged with LAW AND ORDER (1969), a sobering portrait of what it meant to "serve and protect" at the dawn of the Nixon era. We mark Frederick Wiseman's passing by discussing one of his quintessential films. PLUS: We check in on our fallen British comrades (ex-)Prince Andrew and Keir Starmer. JOIN US ON PATREON FOR AN EXTRA EPISODE EVERY WEEK - https://www.patreon.com/posts/693-police-state-151400135