Hit Factory

Culture writer and premiere authority on all things concerning pop divas Sydney Urbanek joins Aaron & Carlee to discuss the 1996 adaptation of the classic Andrew Lloyd Weber & Tim Rice musical 'Evita' staring Madonna. We discuss the pop singer's efforts to silence her Erotica-era critics, the parallel lives of Madonna and the historical figure she portrayed, and the musical's tenuous relationship with Argentine politics. Read and subscribe to Sydney's newsletter Mononym Mythology. Further Reading: Madonna's Private Diaries from Vanity Fair.

This month, we are donating all of our Patreon proceeds to Hotels Not Hospitals, a project of organizers and activists working for the rights of unhoused people in San Francisco. This is an organization spun out of the DSA SF Homelessness Working Group (Democratic Socialists of America, San Francisco Chapter) and is endorsed by DSA SF. We sat down with organizer Edna Kozikaro to discuss the project and how people can get involved. Donate directly to Hotels not Hospitals here. Follow Hotels not Hospitals on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. 

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We close out 2020 with the cult favorite 'Dark City' - a film that definitely didn't influence The Wachowski's 'Matrix' films in any way whatsoever. Aaron & Carlee break down the film's genre-bending aesthetic charms, its relation to the late-90s trend of augmented reality narratives, and discuss the necessity of imagination in developing an alternative political project to neoliberal nostalgia.

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Into the jungle we both wade // Another film from a bygone decade // First - Dr. discourse of a sort // is granted some undue import // For movie talk you'll have to wait // Until we cover the M4A debate // On to Jumanji. The Game. The status quo // And what our next roll will bestowAlso, Aaron was sort of right about The Thief & The Cobbler. Subscribe to Hit Factory on Patreon.

Evan MacDonald from the Kino Lefter Podcast joins Aaron in the Hit Factory to discuss Whit Stillman's 1990 directorial debut 'Metropolitan'. We discuss the recent death knell for the movie theater experience, the utopian socialism of Charles Fourier, and the profound inferiority complex plaguing the elite class. Check out and subscribe to Kino Lefter for more awesome socialist movie content.

It's the summer of 1998, and a celestial rock is on a collision course for planet Earth. Our first ever double-feature episode explores the right-wing, explosive preposterousness of Michael Bay's 'Armageddon' alongside the competent, neoliberal eulogy that is Mimi Leder's 'Deep Impact'. Aaron & Carlee sing some Aerosmith and become Ben Affleck apologists along the way.

Thanksgiving. 1973. Or 1997. Or 2020. We revisit one of the unsung masterpieces of the decade: Ang Lee's "The Ice Storm". Aaron & Carlee discuss the film's once-in-a-generation cast, Mychael Danna's hauntingly evocative score, and the cyclical nature of our political and social malaise.

Subscribe today for access to all of our premium episodes and bonus content. www.patreon.com/hitfactorypod