Middlebrow Madness

Recorded 14 April 2024 This episode contains discussion of suicide and suicidal ideation during the Persona segment Sports fans, I know we've said this before, but this episode contains one of the toughest matchups we've encountered yet; that 122-minute runtime bears that out. We also get to talk about Wes Anderson for the first (only?) time. Also contained herein: both hosts' all-time Alien franchise power rankings, Derek's hottest Wes Anderson take, an attempt at cataloguing the many facets of an all-time art film, and only slightly defamatory talk about Stephen King. In short, another classic episode! RIP to the great…

Recorded on 23 February 2024 Derek must've angered one or another of the Computer Gods, because part of this episode was garbled beyond recognition. But never fear, sports fans! Thanks to Isabelle's considerable skills as an editrix, the seams on the episode are nary audible. So you will hear in the highest fidelity our intrepid hosts debate the pros and cons of your dad's favourite movie, Derek's favorite character actor joke, and of course, the entirety of Isabelle's online bullshit fire sale. We also mention in passing two titans of the American arts who have recently passed. In short, another…

Recorded on 24 November 2023 Sports fans, Isabelle brought the thunder with her reading this week, which threatened to swallow this episode whole, so to speak. But as all episodes must, we eventually get to the matter at hand, which in this case includes one of the most whiplash-inducing matchups in the bracket thus far. We also have some metagaming, a lot of fawning over the classics, and a short discussion of what we mean when we call something "good." In short, another classic episode! This week's matchups: Toy Story v. The Deer Hunter Casablanca v. Barry Lyndon See the…

Recorded on 15 September 2023 Well that goofball Derek up and forgot to upload the new episode last week, so can chastise him via your medium of choice. Sorry about that! But here it is, one week late but no worse for wear. Sports fans, we invite you to take a trip back in time with us, a trip back to the fall of 2023, where your intrepid hosts dusted off their microphones and open-source audio software and recorded an episode of this very podcast for the first time in over two years. This is worth noting because we make…

tap tap Is this thing on? Your eyes and ears do not deceive you, sports fans! We are back from our long hibernation, but instead of overwhelming you with takes so hot they break the Scoville scale, our intrepid hosts return with a super-sized life update spectacular, filling you in on the details of what exactly they've been doing with their lives since mid-2021. Spoiler alert: a lot of hobbies were indulged in and a lot of media was consumed. Derek and Isabelle tell stories, recommend art, and go off on tangents. It's like we never left! The quest for…

Now I'm not one for boasting, sports fans, but this one is a corker. We have an instant-classic opening bit, a huge upset (wink), and an all-time difficult opening round matchup pitting two masterpieces that have a surprising amount in common despite the 75 years that separate them. Also Isabelle makes her co-horst laugh the hardest he ever laughs, and Derek does a dramatic reading of an old film review of his. In short, another classic episode! This week's matchups: Reservoir Dogs v. The Bandit The Great Dictator v. Mad Max: Fury Road NOTE: During our discussion on The Great…

NOTE: This episode contains discussions of suicide. Sometimes the Universe gives you a gift, and sometimes that gift is a poisoned chalice. Sports fans, I have to tell you, our second matchup in this episode has no business happening in Round 1. But the Bracket Gods are capricious, and they will do as they please. In between discussing four very good-to-masterful movies, our intrepid hosts take the time to talk about Oddworld, arena football, #WhiteBoySummer, bar bands, and noted Isabelle reclamation project, Renny Harlin. There's even metagaming in this one.; In short, another classic episode! This week's matchups: The Apartment…

Sports fans, as we being a-tumblin' down towards the end of round one, we encounter in these matchups a couple of mirrored pairs. We have two movies that our intrepid hosts revisit for the first time in a long time, and two masterpieces of their form, each close to one host's heart. Who will gracefully bow out? Who will live another day to possibly become the Greatest Movie of All Time*? What the fuck is up with Cluck Klosterman? The answer to these questions, dear listener, is yes. This week's matchups: Amélie v. Shutter Island Raiders of the Lost Ark…

In the words of the great American philosopher Jon Bon Jovi, we're halfway there! Well, we're halfway through the first round of this white elephant we call the Middlebow Madness bracket, which means we're really only a quarter of the way there. In any case, our intrepid hosts take a load off and contemplate the road travelled between episodes 17 and 32. We name some superlatives, do a little metagaming, and crack a few jokes about spinach and morgellons. In short, sports fans: another classic episode! See the bracket [SPOILERS AHEAD] Drop us a line: [email protected] Follow the show on…

It was bound to happen sooner or later, sports fans: we finally cracked two hours. Naturally, this episode is packed to the gills with tangents about crawdads and Twitter Jail and Derek's dubious acting career. Not that there isn't any movie talk at all: Isabelle has a galaxy-brain take to end all galaxy-brain takes regarding one of our competitors, and Derek, well, he mostly just puts on his Film Bro(tm) hat on for this one. But any way you slice it, once these two matches are through, we will officially 25% of the way to figuring out what exactly is…