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PODCAST

Politics of Cinema

Films are cultural artifacts. There is a political and artistic message in every one and we"re here to document. On each episode we pick a film; sometimes current and sometimes from the riches of world cinema"s 100+ year history, and take a deep dive into what the film is really saying about the world. Both overtly and covertly.

tv & film film history

All Episodes

01:05:41

The Palestinian Experience: Documented and Portrayed

Politics of Cinema ·

2023/12/22

On this episode, we're looking at two cinematic exampoles of the Palestinian expereince. One documentary and one fictionalized portrayal. The documentary, Gaza Ghetto: Portrait of a Palestinian Family (1985), captures exactly what the title implies. We get the lived experiences from grandmother down to grandchildren as they recount their experiences ranging from the 1948 exile to the 1967 war to the 1971 “pacification campaign”. The fiction film is the very poorly titled, The Dupes (1973). It's an

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01:09:06

Systemic Risk: Killing Them Softly (2012) & the...

Politics of Cinema ·

2023/11/10

The fallout 2008 financial crisis has been portrayed on film in a number of ways; from documentary's like Iniside Job (2010) and Capitalism: A Love Story (2009) to ficiton films "inspired" by the events like The Big Short (2015) and Margin Call (2011). Andrew Dominik's Killing Them Softly (2012) takes a different approach. It starts with George V. Higgins' 1974 crime novel, itself the third in a series, that centers on a lower level crime syndicate in Boston. Then Dominik places that story in a

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01:22:18

Green Room & Fascist Tendencies in the Pacific Northwest

Politics of Cinema ·

2023/10/20

This Halloween season we take a look at a recent film we hope gets to cult status soon, Green Room (2015). Anton Yelchin and his bandmates are forced to battle against Patrick Stewart and his group of Neo-Nazis. We get into the pros and cons of non-political punk bands, why the Pacific Northwest is such a haven for white ethnonationalists and when it's okay to swap out character arcs for a pure survival narrative. Follow us at: Patreon / Twitter / Instagram / Letterboxd / Facebook

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01:35:28

Resource Frontiers: Commodity Zones and the Vampiric...

Politics of Cinema ·

2023/09/29

One of the topics that first inspired us to start this podcast, Resource Frontiers. Back in 2016, when Hell or High Water was released, Isaac and I were still working at our beloved art house theatre and our discussion of the film kept coming back to its multi-layered resource frontier setting. Settler colonial zones and the effects on indigenous populations were regular topics of conversations and, of course, Wages of Fear (1953) kept coming up too. Since it took us so long to finally cover this

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01:19:51

Double Feature: Strike!

Politics of Cinema ·

2023/09/08

On this Double Feature episode, we take a look at films about strikes. As the WGA and SAG continue to strike, we thought it would be a good time to examine how Hollywood has protrayed strikes throughout the years. We discuss; Norma Rae (1979), The Pajama Game (1957), Sorry to Bother You (2018), Harlan County, USA (1976), The Organizer (1963) and Chi-Raq (2015) and then put together a double feature (actually two) recommendation. Follow us

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01:13:45

Rebroadcast - Children of Men: The Psychology of the...

Politics of Cinema ·

2023/08/04

While Isaac is immersed in his Arabic language summer camp, we're rebraodcasting our very first episode. In 2027, after 18 years of global human infertility and depression, the world is on the brink of collapse and humanity faces extinction. The United Kingdom, one of the few nations with a functioning government (Stiff upper lip chap!), is deluged by asylum seekers fleeing radiation and plague. In response, the UK has become a police state as the British Army rounds up and executes immigrants. In

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52:28

July 4th Special: How to Blow Up a Pipeline (2022)

Politics of Cinema ·

2023/07/04

This July 4th, celebrate with a true Leftist film that will have you on the edge of you seat with suspense, a pulsing score and politics that will have you debating the need for a diversity of tactics when fighitng the evils of capitalism. We're discussing the film Daniel Goldhaber's How to Blow Up a Pipeline (2022). Follow us at: Patreon / Twitter / Instagram / Letterboxd / Facebook

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38:00

May Day Special: The Man in the Orage Jacket (2014)

Politics of Cinema ·

2023/05/26

This year we celebrated May Day (a little late) by watching a Latvian worker-revenge-horror-film. Aik Karapetian's The Man in the Orage Jacket (2014). Follow us at: Patreon / Twitter / Instagram / Letterboxd / Facebook

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01:16:23

DTV Action: Universal Soldier Regeneration & Day of...

Politics of Cinema ·

2023/05/05

Isaac finally make Aaron sit down and enjoy some DTV action, focusing on the John Hyams' last two entries in the Universal Soldier franchise. Regeneration (2010) and Day of Reckoning (2012). Follow us at: Patreon / Twitter / Instagram / Letterboxd / Facebook

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57:43

Double Feature: Hong Kong Action

Politics of Cinema ·

2023/04/21

On this Double Feature episode, we take a look at two of the greats from the best era for cinematic action - 1980's Hong Kong. On this episode we discuss the art of action and (oftentimes) convoluted politics of In the Line of Duty 4 (1989) & Righting Wrongs (1986). Follow us at: Patreon / Twitter / Instagram / Letterboxd / Facebook

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01:27:04

Auteur Films: Claudine (1974)

Politics of Cinema ·

2023/03/24

We conclude our 2023 series on independent African American auteurs that made landmark films with Claudine (1974). Follow us at: Patreon / Twitter / Instagram / Letterboxd / Facebook Sources: White Balance: How Hollywood Shaped Colorblind Ideology and Undermined Civil Rights by Justin Gomer Daniel Amir Jackson article on Claudine

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01:15:15

Auteur Films: Welcome Home Brother Charles (1975)

Politics of Cinema ·

2023/03/03

We continue our 2023 series on independent African American auteurs that made landmark films with Jamaa Fanaka's Welcome Home Brother Charles (1975). Follow us at: Patreon / Twitter / Instagram / Letterboxd / Facebook

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01:22:20

Auteur Films: The Spook Who Sat by the Door (1973)

Politics of Cinema ·

2023/02/10

We kick off our 2023 series on independent African American auteurs that made landmark films with podcast favorite Ivan Dixon's The Spook Who Sat by the Door (1973). Follow us at: Patreon / Twitter / Instagram / Letterboxd / Facebook

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01:01:09

Classic: Alphaville - A Techno Dystopian Vision of...

Politics of Cinema ·

2023/01/20

With the voluntary passing of Jean-Luc Godard in 2022, we decided that it's long overdue to take a look at one of his classics. Alphaville (1965) is a dystopian science-fiction film shot in black & white on the streets of Paris and is infused with Godard's politics of the moment. But, can Aaron convince Isaac that he actually liked this one? Follow us at: Patreon / Twitter / Instagram / Letterboxd / Facebook

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01:30:35

Classic: Harakiri (1962)

Politics of Cinema ·

2022/12/25

It's masterpiece time here at Politics of Cinema. We're finally discussing Masaki Kobayashi's Harakiri (1962). Follow us at: Patreon / Twitter / Instagram / Letterboxd / Facebook

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54:29

Yakuza Noir #2 - A Colt Is My Passport (1967)

Politics of Cinema ·

2022/12/02

Noirvember concludes with one more Yakuza Noir film from Japan. On this episode we're dicussing Takashi Nomura's A Colt is My Passport (1967). Follow us at: Patreon / Twitter / Instagram / Letterboxd / Facebook

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58:45

Yakuza Noir #1 - Tokyo Drifter (1966)

Politics of Cinema ·

2022/11/18

This Noirvember, we are taking a look at some Yakuza Noir films from Japan. On this episode we're gushing over Seijun Suzuki's Tokyo Drifter (1966). Follow us at: Patreon / Twitter / Instagram / Letterboxd / Facebook

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44:00

Double Feature: Halloween Night

Politics of Cinema ·

2022/10/28

On this Double Feature episode, we highlight some of the horror films we've been watching this Halloween season as well as our planned double (maybe triple) features for Halloween night. Follow us at: Patreon / Twitter / Instagram / Letterboxd / Facebook

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01:08:50

Humans Hunting Humans: Punishment Park (1971) &...

Politics of Cinema ·

2022/10/21

The idea of Humans Hunting Humans has been a story told through film since The Most Dangerous Game back in 1932. There is something about this kind of story that lends itself to a variety of social and political metaphors. Here we take a look at two films from two countries that have virtaually the same plot synopsis, but couldn't be farther apart in execution and their politics. Punishment Park (1971) from the United States and Turkey Shoot (1982) from Australia. Follow us

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01:25:37

LSD Horror: Blue Sunshine (1977) & Mandy (2018)

Politics of Cinema ·

2022/09/23

LSD has been portayed on film in a number of different ways. From the trippy visuals and gonzo narration in Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (1998) to the "how-to trip" guidance of The Trip (1967) to the POV death trip of Enter the Void (2009). Here we take a look at how two LSD fueled horror films explore the cultural detritus of the 1960's ripples all the way to Ronald Reagan's America in the early 1980's. It ain't pretty, but it makes for some wild films. Here's a link to the Lockheed Martin: LSD

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