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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-host 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 Dictator, Isabelle says that in Nazi Germany "Jewish people were fine with the Nazis" when she meant to say "The Nazis were fine with Jewish people." As ever, the context of the episode clarifies this. We trust your intelligence, dear listener, but we thought we'd point it out anyways just so we're crystal clear. Kick a few bucks Palestine's way: iF Charity Palestine Children's Relief Fund See the bracket [SPOILERS AHEAD] Drop us a line: middlebrowmadness@gmail.com Follow the show on Twitter: @middlebrowpod Follow Isabelle on Twitter: @spacejamfan Follow Derek on Twitter: @derek_g Join the Middlebrow Madness Discord

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 v. Mission: Impossible — Fallout Star Wars v. Jaws See the bracket [SPOILERS AHEAD] Drop us a line: middlebrowmadness@gmail.com Follow the show on Twitter: @middlebrowpod Follow Isabelle on Twitter: @spacejamfan Follow Derek on Twitter: @derek_g Join the Middlebrow Madness Discord

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 vs. Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind Orson Welles vs. John Landis | @JFrankensteiner on Twitter See the bracket [SPOILERS AHEAD] Drop us a line: middlebrowmadness@gmail.com Follow the show on Twitter: @middlebrowpod Follow Isabelle on Twitter: @spacejamfan Follow Derek on Twitter: @derek_g Join the Middlebrow Madness Discord

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: middlebrowmadness@gmail.com Follow the show on Twitter: @middlebrowpod Follow Isabelle on Twitter: @spacejamfan Follow Derek on Twitter: @derek_g Join the Middlebrow Madness Discord

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 the #1 movie of all time!* This week's matchups: Incendies v. The Third Man The Godfather v. Close-Up Derek's Planes: Fire and Rescue review, via PopOptiq NOTE: While discussing Incendies, Isabelle makes a few statements that are unclear and appear to directly conflate the Iranian revolution with the work of Sayyid Qutb. While Qutb was very influential both during and after the Iranian revolution, conflating his work with the revolution (and specifically Ruhollah Khomeini) is imprecise and simpler than she meant to imply. See the bracket [SPOILERS AHEAD] Drop us a line: middlebrowmadness@gmail.com Follow the show on Twitter: @middlebrowpod Follow Isabelle on Twitter: @spacejamfan Follow Derek on Twitter: @derek_g Join the Middlebrow Madness Discord

Sports fans, a good podcast episode is only as good as its digressions, and this one has several (shocking, I know). What do our intrepid hosts talk about that isn't the four movies listed below? Isabelle's corny jokes! Derek's pet theory about musical theatre! One of them reads a little Faulkner! Which host, you ask? Listen to yet another classic episode on the road to crowning The Greatest Movie of All Time* and find out! Punctuation!!! This week's matchups: Witness for the Prosecution v. Rang De Basanti Coco v. Stalker See the bracket [SPOILERS AHEAD] Drop us a line: middlebrowmadness@gmail.com Follow the show on Twitter: @middlebrowpod Follow Isabelle on Twitter: @spacejamfan Follow Derek on Twitter: @derek_g Join the Middlebrow Madness Discord

Sports fans, we nominally talk movies about on the show, but you know what else crops up a lot in this, our landmark 30th episode and our first missive of 2021? Racism in Hollywood, and piss. Lots of it. Not necessarily in that order. We go short on some masterpieces and long on what Derek loves to call "rich texts." There's even a little metagaming going on. All in all, another classic episode on the road to crowning The Greatest Movie of All Time*. This week's matchups: The Kid v. Gone With the Wind Diabolique v. The Green Mile A spot of context for both our matchups today: Magical Negro | Wikipedia See the bracket [SPOILERS AHEAD] Drop us a line: middlebrowmadness@gmail.com Follow the show on Twitter: @middlebrowpod Follow Isabelle on Twitter: @spacejamfan Follow Derek on Twitter: @derek_g Join the Middlebrow Madness Discord

Sports fans, you are getting four podcasts for the price of one this week! In addition to the usual movie bracket-based shenanigans, we have a QAnon-skewering politics podcast at the top, a short true-crime missive in the middle, and a full-on miniature games podcast to close the whole thing out. Digressive? Us? Perish the thought. The march towards crowning the Greatest Movie of All Time* continues! This week's matchups: To Kill a Mockingbird v. Gran Torino Psycho v. La La Land Isabelle's favourite murder (Hinterkaifeck murders | Wikipeda) See the bracket [SPOILERS AHEAD] Drop us a line: middlebrowmadness@gmail.com Follow the show on Twitter: @middlebrowpod Follow Isabelle on Twitter: @spacejamfan Follow Derek on Twitter: @derek_g Join the Middlebrow Madness Discord

Running parallel to our intrepid hosts' quest for the Greatest Movie of All Time* is their quest to make each episode of the show longer and more digressive than the previous one. And sports fans? Both quests are humming along quite nicely. So what treasures does this episode contain? The residual evils of pandemic capitalism! An NBC fantasy miniseries no one remembers! A song lyric open mic! And oh yeah, two of the greatest masterpieces of world cinema going head-to-head in a first-round matchup better befitting the Sweet Sixteen. Plus, of course, takes, takes, and more takes. In short, another classic episode! This week's matchups: Yojimbo v. The Seventh Seal Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers v. Before Sunset See the bracket [SPOILERS AHEAD] Drop us a line: middlebrowmadness@gmail.com Follow the show on Twitter: @middlebrowpod Follow Isabelle on Twitter: @spacejamfan Follow Derek on Twitter: @derek_g Join the Middlebrow Madness Discord

A little bit of inside baseball for you, sports fans: when Isabelle sent Derek the edited version of the show, she titled it "The One Where It Goes Off the Rails." What could possibly have made the longest episode of the show to date disintegrate in such a way? Could it have something to with the giant detours (Sasha Grey: Cinephile, the tragedy of Kelsey Grammer, the "Reverse Roger Deakins," a class project gone horribly wrong, the legacy of Current TV) that our intrepid duo take while talking about a rock-solid quartet of participants? Listen to what is shaping up to be another classic episode and find out! This week's matchups: M v. How to Train Your Dragon Memento v. Spotlight NOTE: Re: Precious, yes, we know that Mo'Nique in fact won the Academy award for Best Supporting Actress while Gabourey Sidibe was nominated for Best Actress but lost. Don't worry about it. Five Favorite Films with Adult Film Star Sasha Grey | Rotten Tomatoes See the bracket [SPOILERS AHEAD] Drop us a line: middlebrowmadness@gmail.com Follow the show on Twitter: @middlebrowpod Follow Isabelle on Twitter: @spacejamfan Follow Derek on Twitter: @derek_g Join the Middlebrow Madness Discord

It's been a long, long six months, sports fans, but the show is in fact back from the dead! We pick up right where we left off, which is to say we have a long X-rated digression right at the top and then remember that there are movies to talk about. Four movies to be precise. Four flicks enter, two flicks leave! It's like every other episode, but with different discursive tangents about pop culture ephemera! We're back, baby! This week's matchups: Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade v. Room The Matrix v. The Help - An Open Letter to the Fans of The Help | Association of Black Women Historians See the bracket [SPOILERS AHEAD] Drop us a line: middlebrowmadness@gmail.com Follow us on Twitter: @middlebrowpod Follow Isabelle on Twitter: @spacejamfan Follow Derek on Twitter: @derek_g

We’re a little late, but no worse for wear, sports fans! This time around, our intrepid hosts ponder whether the crew of Sunrise actually got a pig drunk, the concept of audience manipulation in cinema, and contend with Derek’s wild, earth-shattering take about Ridley Scott. Plus, a new chapter in the Untitled Isabelle Arf Fan Fiction Project (that I swear Derek didn’t sandbag; there were some recording shenanigans at play, I promise). In short, another classic episode!This week’s matchups: Amadeus v. Sunrise Gladiator v. Hachi: A Dog’s Tale–Join the Middlebrow Madness Discord!–See the bracket [SPOILERS AHEAD] Drop us a line: middlebrowmadness@gmail.com Follow us on Twitter: @middlebrowpod Follow Isabelle on Twitter: @spacejamfan Follow Derek on Twitter: @derek_g

Hot off our viewing of Judgment at Nuremberg, Isabelle schools us on the work of German political theorist Carl Schmitt and how they intersect (or don’t) with Stanley Kramer’s film. NOTE: It was raining during the recording of this episode, so please forgive the sound quality. And yes, Isabelle knows that “Weimar” is pronounced with a “V,” she was just very tired. Political Theology Four Chapters on the Concept of Sovereignty by Carl Schmitt – See the bracket [SPOILERS AHEAD] Drop us a line: middlebrowmadness@gmail.com Follow us on Twitter: @middlebrowpod Follow Isabelle on Twitter: @spacejamfan Follow Derek on Twitter: @derek_g

Sports fans, this one’s got everything you can ask for: weird bits, charlatanry, amphibian Messiahs, v i b e s, nostalgia, smart stuff, dumb stuff, and what is probably the single most shocking scene in any film we’ve covered so far. Here’s a hint: it has something to do with the movie with the word “Nuremberg” in the title. in the bracket. In short, another classic episode!This week’s matchups: Heat vs. Judgment at Nuremberg The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King vs. Dog Day Afternoon–See the bracket [SPOILERS AHEAD] Drop us a line: middlebrowmadness@gmail.com Follow us on Twitter: @middlebrowpod Follow Isabelle on Twitter: @spacejamfan Follow Derek on Twitter: @derek_g

Sports fans, Derek knows he fucked up the number of the show in the intro, don’t worry about it. But despite that rocky start, our intrepid hosts navigate between the twin poles of Wild Digressions (conspiracy theories! the recorded output of the Decemberists!) and Hard-Hitting Film Criticism (the lingering effects of propaganda! agreeing in bad faith! the Cable Hall of Fame career of Wolfgang Petersen!). Plus, chapter 2 of the Untitled Isabelle Arf Fan Fiction Project. In short, another classic episode!This week’s matchups: Das Boot v. Platoon The Lives of Others v. The Wages of Fear–See the bracket [SPOILERS AHEAD] Drop us a line: middlebrowmadness@gmail.com Follow us on Twitter: @middlebrowpod Follow Isabelle on Twitter: @spacejamfan Follow Derek on Twitter: @derek_g

We’re back with a vengeance, sports fans! We talk about the why of the dudebro canon, director market correction, the funny side of Ingmar Bergman, and the motion picture with the credits that have perhaps aged the worst of all the movies we’ve covered so far. Plus, Isabelle introduces a new node in her increasingly elaborate web of bits. In short, another classic episode!This week’s matchups: Snatch v. Wild Strawberries The Usual Suspects v. La haine–See the bracket [SPOILERS AHEAD] Drop us a line: middlebrowmadness@gmail.com Follow us on Twitter: @middlebrowpod Follow Isabelle on Twitter: @spacejamfan Follow Derek on Twitter: @derek_g

Sorry for the radio silence, sports fans! Derek and Isabelle are here to bring you to up to speed with the goings-on in their lives, the ongoing pandemic, and gauge interest in a potential fan Discord (among other things). – See the bracket [SPOILERS AHEAD] Drop us a line: middlebrowmadness@gmail.com Follow us on Twitter: @middlebrowpod Follow Isabelle on Twitter: @spacejamfan Follow Derek on Twitter: @derek_g

Sports fans, I’m not going to lie to you: thins get real blue and real weird real fast in this on. If this pod had a rating, it’d be a hard R. It’s also an episode that swings wildly between the twin poles of “tangential bullshit” (left-of-centre fetishes and 90s rom-coms where one of the leads would later come out as gay) and “actual movie stuff” (a discussion how 2001 aged so well, two very different reads on Blade Runner 2049). In short, another classic episode!CWs for kink, sexual assault, racism, and probably some other stuff, but those are the three main ones.This week’s matchups: 2001: A Space Odyssey v. Finding Nemo The Intouchables vs. Blade Runner 2049–See the bracket [SPOILERS AHEAD] Drop us a line: middlebrowmadness@gmail.com Follow us on Twitter: @middlebrowpod Follow Isabelle on Twitter: @spacejamfan Follow Derek on Twitter: @derek_g

We’re back, sports fans, and we’re ringing in the new year! Only we don’t make reference to this fact at all, since we recorded this some time ago. Our intrepid hosts experience both sides of the quality coin in this one, from baffling slogs to baffling successes. There’s also talk of Baz Luhrmann and chili recipes. In other words, another classic episode!CW for reference to sexual violence, racialized violence, other kinds of violence, police brutality, Nazis, and general unpleasantness.This week’s matchups: Downfall v. Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri Fight Club v. The Handmaiden–Sheet Pan Vegetarian Summer Bowl (via Self)–See the bracket [SPOILERS AHEAD] Drop us a line: middlebrowmadness@gmail.com Follow us on Twitter: @middlebrowpod Follow Isabelle on Twitter: @spacejamfan Follow Derek on Twitter: @derek_g

Our march towards the championship match chugs on, sports fans! Our intrepid hosts cover everything you’ve come to expect from the show: Sex! Metagaming! Personality quizzes! They also go deep on three of the funnest films they’ve covered so far on the pod, and, uh… one that is decidedly less fun. We’ll let you figure out which ones are which.This week’s matchups: North by Northwest v. Life of Brian Grave of the Fireflies v. Rush–See the bracket [SPOILERS AHEAD] Drop us a line: middlebrowmadness@gmail.com Follow us on Twitter: @middlebrowpod Follow Isabelle on Twitter: @spacejamfan Follow Derek on Twitter: @derek_g