Category: Culture
Looking Back at Blue Valentine, a Great Movie That Will Absolutely Ruin Your Day
“I still haven’t seen Blue Valentine yet, because although everyone who’s seen it tells me it’s good, the trailer gave me really bad ukulele flashbacks. (Seriously, for the next month I’d break out in a cold sweat if I so ...
Watching Mates: Richard Nixon – Easy Rider / Blazing Saddles
Lars and Michael discuss the films of the Nixon administration, reflecting on hippie culture, racism, a developing “us versus them” mentality within the United States — and a whole bunch of dirty tricks — through the lens of the films ...
The Pervasiveness of Richard Nixon in Pop Culture
To say presidents dominate our pop culture is an understatement. We often take for granted how ingrained they are in the American psyche and our comedic outlets, even when they epitomize the dull tepidness of Gerald Ford or George H.W. ...
Watching Mates: Lyndon B. Johnson – Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner / Dr. Strangelove
Lars and Michael discuss the films of the Johnson administration, reflecting on dramatic domestic progress and a distrust of foreign policy apparatus through the lens of Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner and Dr. Strangelove.
Chatroom: The Falcon and the Winter Soldier
The final episode of Marvel’s The Falcon and the Winter Soldier aired on Disney+ this past Friday. It tells the story of, well: the Falcon, Sam Wilson – and the Winter Soldier, Bucky Barnes – in the wake up the ...
The Visitors Might Be Listening – V: The Original Miniseries – Part 1
In The Postrider’s newest podcast miniseries, Louis Ryan and Lars Emerson take a look back at V, the sci-fi franchise from the 1980s. Each episode takes the viewer back to the wonder years of Network TV Miniseries events, and has ...
Watching Mates: John F. Kennedy – The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance / Lolita
Lars and Michael discuss the films of the Kennedy era, discussing themes of heroism and elitism in American society through the lens of The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance and Lolita.
5 Rabbits To Make for an Unconventional Easter Sunday
Easter Sunday is upon us, that time of year when we gather with our families for buffets at the local country club, debate eating marshmallow peeps, and look for garishly painted eggs. And for some of us, it’s a time ...
Watching Mates: Dwight Eisenhower – The Blob / Shane
Lars and Michael discuss the films of the Eisenhower era, comparing the infamous The Blob and the more-critically-acclaimed Shane. The narratives on being driven from one’s home, McCarthyism, and generational strife give context to Eisenhower’s above-the-fray approach in his presidency.
Superman & Lois: Episode 1 – The Man of Steel lands on The CW (Review)
Look! Up in the sky! It’s a bird! It’s a plane! It’s a…loving father? Once again, the Powers That Be have taken it upon themselves to create another primetime show centered around the father of all superheroes, Superman! It’s been ...
Four Cool Concepts I’d Like to See in ‘The Falcon and The Winter Soldier’ (But Probably Won’t)
Over the 80 years that Captain America has been published by Marvel Comics, a large amount of ideas, concepts, and mythology have emerged around the character. Some of these ideas and characters have made their way outside of comics and ...
Watching Mates: Harry Truman – The Third Man / The Hitch-Hiker
In the first episode of Watching Mates, Lars and Michael team up to discuss the films of the Truman era, comparing film noirs The Third Man and The Hitch-Hiker. The international intrigue and sense of being lost in a new ...
2021 Grammys Preview: Just When You Thought It Couldn’t Get Worse…
What’s the weirdest movie you can think of being nominated for Best Picture? I don’t mean weird as in David Lynch weird, I mean weird as in “why on Earth would the Academy nominate this movie” for Best Picture ...
Chatroom: WandaVision and the Future of the Marvel Cinematic Universe
This past Friday marked the series finale of WandaVision, the first television entry of the Marvel Cinematic Universe to debut on Disney+, and the first in a number of TV shows on that platform that will feature characters from the ...
New to Bollywood? 3 Idiots is a Great Place to Start
“Life as an engineer will bring only frustration” – Farhan Qureshi I had never heard of 3 Idiots until I found it on one of the unchecked ...
Introducing Watching Mates
Your favorite podcasting 20-something-year-old former DC boys are back on the air with their upcoming project, Watching Mates. Coming out later this March, each episode they’ll delve into postwar presidents, starting with Harry Truman, through the lens of the films of ...
Overrated, Underrated, and Properly Rated: The Hold Steady
On February 19th, The Hold Steady released their eighth studio album, Open Door Policy. This may not be a big deal to you. But I can assure you that there are some people for whom this is a VERY big ...
The Postrider’s Top 30 Songs of 2020
2020… I mean, what do you say? Between the coronavirus pandemic, nationwide protests, and a long, drawn out presidential election, the country practically lived through an entire verse of “We Didn’t Start the Fire” in only twelve months. And while ...
Raw and Haunting, Phoebe Bridgers’ Punisher Lives Up To Its Name
Phoebe Bridgers released her new album, Punisher, earlier than expected on Thursday, June 18th. “I’m not pushing the record until things go back to ‘normal,’ because I don’t think they should,” Bridgers said in a tweet that also included a ...
How Fetch the Bolt Cutters Became the Album of Quarantine
“I Want You to Love Me,” the opening track of Fetch the Bolt Cutters, Fiona Apple’s fifth studio album, begins with a digital fake out. A chintzy drum machine and minimalist keyboard line take up the first twenty or so ...
I Listened to Every Hoodie Allen Album So You Don’t Have To, Though You Should
When I became single again a few months ago, I warned my co-editors that there was a non-zero chance I’d get back into “frat rap”, as I had been a bit infamous for a few years prior. Turns out, it ...
Durand Jones and The Indications Try to Bring the World Together at The Birchmere
Durand Jones and the Indications lay down some soulful jams at The Birchmere (Photo credit: The Birchmere)I already expressed this opinion in my Top 30 Songs of 2019 countdown (will I ever get done with my Best Albums of 2019 ...