Michael and Us

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.

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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.

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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