Did You Do Your Homework? | A Pop Culture Podcast

In the wake of the release of Midnight Mass (which we do not discuss but you should definitely watch), Pete and Martha ask: why are we so interested in cults? We look at three pieces of media to break it down: The Jonestown Massacre: Paradise Lost (2007, dir. Tim Wolochatiuk), Martha Marcy May Marlene (2011, dir. Sean Durkin) and The Endless (2017, dir. Justin Benson and Aaron Moorehead)

We're back after a brief break for health reasons! Maren and Martha take a vacation to Bali with the 2021 Netflix original A Perfect Fit (dir. Hadrah Daeng Ratu). Come along and bask in the beautiful tropic scenery and questionable life decisions of our characters.

A content warning to all of our listeners: we're discussion rape revenge movies, their history, and their place in our current cultural environment. Which may not be the discussion for you! We look at the genre's beginnings and how women in film are reclaiming it to make their own statements. Homework for the episode: The Last House on the Left (1972, dir. Wes Craven); Revenge (2017, dir. Coralie Fargeat); Promising Young Woman (2020, dir. Emerald Fennell) The article Martha reads from: https://www.newyorker.com/culture/cultural-comment/how-promising-young-woman-refigures-the-rape-revenge-movie

This is your reality...or is it? Pete and Martha take a look at some mind-bending media intent on destroying the line between the real and the imagined. Homework for the episode: The Game (1997, dir. David Fincher), RABBITS (2017-current)

Did you know this movie is NOT based on a book? Because Martha and Maren sure didn't! Come along with us on yet another "manic pixie death girl" journey as we dig into the Bella Thorne vehicle, MIDNIGHT SUN.

It's a replay, Charlie Brown! Life got to be a bit too much to record this week, so we're giving you a small interlude with some summer reading recs recycled from last year. Hopefully, they bring you joy this time, too. Next week, back to your regularly scheduled ARG discussion!

Maren and Martha check out the Netflix original Good on Paper (2021, dir. Kimmy Gatewood), and ask the question: is this a rom com? We've argued about it before, but this time, we're pretty sure what the answer is.

We have come to the end of our quest, friends. Pete and Martha cap their Arthurian series with a look at media all about the myth and legend of King Arthur. Also, spoiler warning for THE GREEN KNIGHT, which we have been itching to discuss for many months now. Homework for the episode: Excalibur (1981, dir. John Boorman) and Merlin (1998, dir. Steve Barron)

Part two of our Arthurian Triptych has arrived! This time, we're discussing King Arthur and comedy, through the lens of two stone cold classics. Homework for the episode: The Sword in the Stone (1963, dir. Wolfgang Reitherman), Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975, dir. Terry Gilliam and Terry Jones)

We had our fun last episode, but it's time to get back to business as usual: watching over dramatic teens make questionable life decisions. Today, Maren and Martha discuss the 2020 Amazon Prime original, Chemical Hearts, based off the novel Our Chemical Hearts by Krystal Sutherland. Written and directed by Richard Tanne, and starring Lili Reinhart and Austin Abrams.

Do you like theme months? I heard you liked theme months! We start our latest deep dive into a single topic (inspired by the upcoming release of A24's THE GREEN KNIGHT) with a look at "historically accurate" accounts of the King Arthur legend.

It's episode 50! Instead of talking about one movie, Maren and Martha pause to take a look back at some of their favorites from the previous 50 (well, technically 48) they've already watched. Here's to the next 50!

We've come to the end (for the moment) of our drawn-out conversation on Westerns, and we hope you have had as much fun as we have! To cap everything off, we're talking about the Neo-Western - the Western set in modern times, with more cars than horses but just as many cowboy hats. Homework for the episode: No Country for Old Men (2007, dir. Joel and Ethan Coen) and Hell or High Water (2016, dir. David Mackenzie)

Hail and well met and apologies! Life got the better of us, but we finally have a new episode for you. Maren and Martha watched the 2020 Jane Austen adaptation Modern Persuasion (dir. Alex Appel and Jonathan Lisecki) and critics agree: that certainly was a movie they watched.

It's still Westerns month, and on this episode, Martha gets to fully wallow in the nexus point of several of her interests: critiquing masculinity, cowboys, and the films of Kelly Reichardt. Pete is a general good sport about all of it. Homework for the episode: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966, dir. Sergio Leone) and First Cow (2020, dir. Kelly Reichardt)

Sorry this one's a little late! It's time to get the summer started with a solid summer teen film hiding a pretty dark secret. Today's movie is the 2021 Netflix original, Caught By A Wave (dir. Massimiliano Camaiti)

Yeehaw! It's the start of Westerns Month over here at the DYDYH Ranch. Too much? Probably! We're kicking the summer off with our first episode all about Westerns; specifically, about how Westerns engaged with the idea of a vanishing Frontier. Homework for the episode: Deadwood, episodes 1-5 (2004, created by David Milch), and The Wild Bunch (1969, dir. Sam Peckinpah)

Can you believe we talk about Desperados (2020, dir. LP) for almost a full hour and never get into the actual title? Shameful.

Look, it's really all about family. And Corona. Homework for the episode: Furious 7 (2015, dir. James Wan); Firefly 1.08, "Out of Gas" and 1.13, "Heart of Gold" (2002)

Girl, put your records on, because we got a new teen dance movie to discuss! Maren and Martha watch the German Netflix original, Into the Beat (2021, dir. Stefan Westerwelle).