Culture Gabfest – Details, episodes & analysis

The sugarcane fields! La casita! Piraguas! Lady Gaga! Ricky Martin! An actual wedding! Bad Bunny’s immense and boisterous Super Bowl Halftime show brought a whole Puerto Rican universe to Levi’s Stadium and into American viewers’ homes. Julia and guest hosts Nadira Goffe and Rebecca Onion revel in the joyful spectacle and are joined by Slate writer Joshua Rivera to decode the inclusive politics of this party. 

Next, the panel examines the bracing, anxiety-inducing film If I Had Legs I’d Kick You. Starring a ferocious and funny Rose Byrne and directed by Mary Bronstein, it’s a jittery, intense portrait of motherhood.

Finally, they discuss the hugely popular podcast The Rest Is History and ponder how two British dudes—Tom Holland and Dominic Sandbrook—talking about things like the Battle of Carthage captured so much attention and admiration.

In an exclusive bonus episode for Slate Plus subscribers, it’s time for some Wednesday morning quarterbacking to size up the big game’s real players: the commercials.

Endorsements

Nadira: The new album of footwork music OVERTIME by the underground hip hop outfit usertime and Marsh crane as well as the new album URGH by the English–French noise rock band Mandy, Indiana.

Rebecca: The novel The Director by Daniel Kehlmann and the 2011 appropriately moody Bronte adaptation Wuthering Heights directed by Andrea Arnold.

Julia: The new cookbook by Joshua McFadden Six Seasons of Pasta — try all the absurd little steps at least once, the cheese gravel is good!

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Podcast production by Benjamin Frisch. Production assistance by Daniel Hirsch.

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This week, Steve, Dana and guest host Sam Adams talk anti-authoritarian art in its many forms. First, they take up It Was Just an Accident, the Cannes Palme d’Or-winning film by Iranian filmmaker Jafar Panahi. Inspired in part by Panahi’s own experience being imprisoned for critiquing the Iranian government, his new film—made in secret from the regime— holds back little in its sharp political critique, rage, and… a surprising amount of comedy.

Not surprising in its amount of comedy— but maybe in its frequently anti-authoritarian politics—is Mel Brooks: The 99 Year Old Man! The documentary series about the showbiz legend, produced by Judd Apatow and Michael Bonfiglio, is a loving portrait of the long, unmatched, and revolutionary in its own way, career of Brooks.

Inspired by the recent release “Streets of Minneapolis” by Bruce Springsteen, the panel dedicates its final segment to the state of protest music in 2026. Joined by music critic Carl Wilson, of the Slate and Crritic!, they discuss the long tradition and still potent power of singer/songwriters with acoustic guitars—and the many political artists who defy that stereotype. To hear some of the music they talked about, plus several more current protest songs, check out our 2026 Protest Playlist.

In our bonus episode for Plus subscribers, the gang eulogizes the divine comic genius of Catherine O’Hara.

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On this week’s show, Julia and Steve are joined by guest host Jamelle Bouie to crack mysteries corporeal and divine in Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery. The latest entrant in Rian Johnson’s whodunnit franchise sees Daniel Craig return as detective Benoit Blanc to team up with an earnest—and earnestly handsome—priest played by Josh O’Connor.

Next, they take on the hefty new Ken Burns documentary series The American Revolution, a sprawling, complicated, fife music-scored examination of this nation’s founding.  Finally, are we experiencing a Great Stupidening? In a conversation about New York Magazine’s “Stupid Issue” and The Atlantic piece ‘A Recipe for Idiocracy,’ our smarty pants contemplate American idiocy. 

In an exclusive Slate Plus bonus episode, the gang (with Dana!) recap Pluribus episode 6 “HDP.”

Don’t forget: we want your cultural queries! We’re gathering your most pressing questions for our annual call-in show. If you’ve got a burning one, email us at culturefest@slate.com or give us a call and leave a message at: 347-201-2397.

Endorsements:

Jamelle: The sequels of the early '90s martial arts B-movie Best of the Best, specifically Best of the Best II and Best of the Best 3: No Turning Back.

Steve: The Wong Kar Wai film In The Mood for Love. 

Julia:  Joyride the new memoir by Susan Orlean.

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Email us your thoughts at culturefest@slate.com. 

Podcast production by Benjamin Frisch. Production assistance by Daniel Hirsch.

Need to set up your Slate Plus feed? If you subscribed through Slate.com, check out our FAQ at slate.com/podcastfaqs for easy instructions. Members subscribed via Apple Podcasts get automatic access—no setup required.

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On this week’s show, Slate culture writers Nadira Goffe and Dan Kois fill in for Julia and Stephen. First up, the panel dissects Love Lies Bleeding with What’s Next producer Madeline Ducharme. Writer-director Rose Glass’ second feature stars Kristen Stewart and Katy O’Brian as beefed up, star-crossed lovers, in a twisted and gory love story about two unhealthily enmeshed women. (You can read Madeline Ducharme and Christina Cauterucci’s detailed review of the sex scenes in Love Lies Bleeding here!) Then, the trio explores The Regime, a weird and tonally bizarre Max limited series by showrunner Will Tracy (The Menu, Succession), in which Kate Winslet–in a commanding performance–plays the fictional dictator of an unnamed European country. Finally, can a book published posthumously do more harm than good? The panel discusses renowned author Gabríel Garcia Márquez’s latest novella, Until August, which was published ten years after his death–and without his consent. 

In the exclusive Slate Plus segment, Nadira, Dan, and Dana chew over the rise and fall of food trends, inspired by Kim Severson’s piece for The New York Times, “The Coolest Menu Item at the Moment Is… Cabbage?” 

Recipes mentioned by Dan: 

1. Gilgeori Toast (Korean Street Toast with Cabbage and Egg) by Darun Kwak for The New York Times. 
2. Vegan Bunny Chow by Meera Sodha for The Guardian. 
3. Somen Salad by Sheldon Simeon.
4. 
   

Email us at culturefest@slate.com. 

Outro music: "Funk Wife Punk Life" by L. M. Styles

Endorsements:

Dana: Extreme Friend of the Pod (EFOP) Isaac Butler’s Substack, Complete Works. Specifically, his most recent post: “It Ain’t Me, Babe: Complicity and consequences, from sitcoms to Gaza.” 

Nadira: Two albums – World Wide Whack by Philadelphia rapper, Tierra Whack, and Brittany Howard’s What Now.

Dan: Radiant: The Life and Line of Keith Haring by Brad Gooch. A beautiful chronicle of the artist’s life. 

Podcast production by Jared Downing. Production assistance by Kat Hong. 

Hosts

Dana Stephens, Nadira Goffe, Dan Kois

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On this week’s show, the panel is first joined by Mark Harris, cultural historian and the author of Pictures at a Revolution: Five Movies and the Birth of the New Hollywood, to discuss the 96th Academy Awards: a fun, glitzy return to form filled with surprisingly political moments. Then, the three review FX’s Shōgun, a massive epic set in 17th century Japan that many are calling “the new Game of Thrones.” But does it live up to the hype? Finally, the trio examines “Behind F1’s Velvet Curtain,” Kate Wagner’s spellbinding 5,000-word piece about the world of Formula 1 racing that Road & Track published then promptly yanked from the internet without explanation. Although Wagner’s piece is no longer live on Road & Track, you can still read it on Wayback Machine’s internet archive.

In the exclusive Slate Plus segment, Mark Harris returns to talk about his New York Times essay, “How Bad Can It Get for Hollywood?” which details what we can expect from movies in 2024 (spoiler alert: it’s not looking good). 

Email us at culturefest@slate.com. 

Outro music: “8-Bit Hop” by Ash Sculptures

Endorsements:

Dana: HINT.FM’s Wind Map, which illustrates “the delicate tracery of wind flowing over the US.” 

Julia: Tejal Rao’s recipe for Kale Sauce Pasta, adapted from Joshua McFadden.   

Steve: “What Physicists Have Been Missing” by theoretical physicist Sabine Hossenfelder. 

Podcast production by Jared Downing. Production assistance by Kat Hong.

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On this week’s show, the panel returns to Arrakis! First up, the trio reviews Dune: Part Two, the (as the title suggests) second part of Denis Villeneuve’s adaptation of Frank Herbert’s 1965 science fiction epic. In it, Timothée Chalamet plays Paul Atreides, the supposed “messiah” of Arrakis, a hostile desert planet rich in spice, in a fantastic feat of world building and worm-riding. Then, they examine God Save Texas, a three-part docu-series streaming on Max that follows three Texan filmmakers (Richard Linklakter, Alex Stapleton, and Iliana Sosa) as they return to their respective hometowns and chronicle the state’s complex history with the prison system, oil business, and border laws. Finally, the panel is joined by Paul Schnee, an acclaimed casting director whose credits include Spotlight, Winter’s Bone, and The Help, to discuss the Academy Awards’ most recent addition: an Oscar for Casting. 

In the exclusive Slate Plus segment, the panel answers a listener question from Eliot: What are some pieces of culture that your children have introduced to you? 

Email us at culturefest@slate.com. 

Outro music: “Last Sunday” by OTE

Endorsements:

Dana: Werner Herzog’s 2011 documentary, Into the Abyss. The film examines America’s capital punishment system. 

Julia: The Lady and the Tramp, which is still great and bizarre, and somehow, makes the dogs… hot? 

Steve: Australian novelist Helen Garner’s 2014 non-fiction book The House of Grief, which follows a man and his broken life, a community wracked by tragedy, and the long and torturous road to closure. 

Podcast production by Jared Downing. Production assistance by Kat Hong. 

Hosts

Dana Stephens, Julia Turner, Stephen Metcalf

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On this week’s show, the panel is first joined by Wesley Morris, New York Times’ critic at large, to dissect This Is Me… Now: A Love Story, Jennifer Lopez’s bizarre, nutty, yet utterly delicious self-funded vanity project that cost the singer $20 million to produce. (Wesley wrote a brilliant piece about it for the Times.) Then, the three explore 20 Days in Mariupol, the Oscar-nominated documentary by Ukrainian journalist Mstyslav Chernov that depicts the atrocities of the Russia-Ukraine war through on-the-ground footage and harrowing accounts of civilians. Finally, in a new oral history of the Village Voice, entitled The Freaks Came Out to Write: The Definitive History of the Village Voice, the Radical Paper That Changed American Culture, author Tricia Romano tells the iconic alt-weekly newspaper’s history through 200 interviews with its legendary writers, editors, and photographers. We discuss.

In the exclusive Slate Plus segment, we share an impromptu conversation between the hosts and Wesley Morris.

Email us at culturefest@slate.com. 

Outro music: "Zero Gravity" by ELFL

Endorsements:

Cameron: Longtime Culture Gabfest producer, Cameron Drews, is moving onto his next project but came on one last time to endorse! He endorses movie theater subscriptions and is a big fan of Alamo Drafthouse’s season pass. 

Dana: The Criterion Channel’s new “Gothic Noir” series. 

Julia: An algorithm-recommended bop, UNTZ UNTZ by Inji. 

Steve: The Milk Carton Kids’ cover of Pink Floyd’s “Wish You Were Here” and a performance of their song, “All of the Time in the World to Kill,” featuring some lovely on-stage banter. 

Podcast production by Jared Downing. Production assistance by Kat Hong. 

Hosts

Dana Stephens, Julia Turner, Stephen Metcalf

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On this week’s show, the panel begins by dissecting Mr. & Mrs. Smith, the episodic remake of Brangelina’s 2005 espionage film. The Prime Video series stars Donald Glover and Maya Erskine as the titular Smiths, spies who become “married” as a part of the job, and explores partnership in the gig economy in a quieter, smaller, and less glamorous version of the original. Then, they review The Color Purple, a movie-musical adapted from Alice Walker’s seminal novel. The film stars Fantasia Barrino and Taraji P. Henson, as well as Danielle Brooks, who was nominated for Best Supporting Actress for her role as Sofia. Finally, it’s the viral scam that rocked the internet: “The Day I Put $50,000 in a Shoe Box and Handed It to a Stranger” is a first-hand account written by The Cut’s financial-advice columnist, Charlotte Cowles, about the time she fell for an Amazon scam call. Our panel reviews the piece and explores its ethics. 

In the exclusive Slate Plus segment, Julia discusses her big life changes, including a new fellowship at USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism. 

Email us at culturefest@slate.com. 

Outro music: “Pull Me Out” by Mike Stringer

Endorsements:

Dana: Dance Life on Prime Video, a five-episode series that follows the students at Brent Street Academy, the southern hemisphere’s most prestigious dance academy. 

Julia: The Hobonichi Techo Planner Book, a planner that’s descended from the heavens. The book uses thin and light yet durable paper and employs the same thread-stitch binding as a dictionary, allowing it to lay flat open for glorious, comfortable writing. 

Steve: A two-part endorsement: Listen to his playlist of cover songs, Let’s Dance, while making hand-made pasta with a Marcato hand-crank machine. 

Podcast production by Jared Downing. Production assistance by Kat Hong. 

Hosts

Dana Stephens, Julia Turner, Stephen Metcalf

Need to set up your Slate Plus feed? If you subscribed through Slate.com, check out our FAQ at slate.com/podcastfaqs for easy instructions. Members subscribed via Apple Podcasts get automatic access—no setup required.

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On this week’s show, the panel returns to 1985 and reviews The Greatest Night in Pop, Netflix’s star-studded documentary about how “We Are the World” (a charity single performed by USA for Africa, a supergroup comprised of the most popular artists not only of the time, but arguably, ever) came to be and the legendary night it was recorded. Although it features cameos from Michael Jackson, Lionel Richie, Diana Ross, Paul Simon, Tina Turner, Cyndi Lauper, and more, the documentary manages to be quite modest in its ambition. Then, the three discuss Rustin, director George C. Wolfe’s biopic about Bayard Rustin, an advisor to Martin Luther King Jr. whose legacy has often been glossed over. Rustin stars a fantastic Colman Domingo as its titular lead and is a celebratory example of the importance of telling gay/queer stories with queer creatives above and below the line of production. Finally, it’s the Slate True-Crime Canon! Cheyna Roth, contributor to the Canon and author of Between Two Wars: A True Crime Collection: Mysterious Disappearances, High-Profile Heists, Baffling Murders, and More joins to break down the monstrous endeavor. 

(Roth’s other book is Cold Cases: A True Crime Collection)

In the exclusive Slate Plus segment, the panel discusses Super Bowl LVIII and analyzes the advertisements, Usher’s half-time performance, and the Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce love story at the center of it all. 

Email us at culturefest@slate.com. 

Outro music: "Self Made Woman" by Katharine Appleton

Endorsements:

Dana: Her perfect plane movie, Dumb Money, which features a superstar cast that’s always in-sync. 

Julia: Small Mercies by Dennis Lehane, an “all-consuming tale of revenge, family love, festering hate, and insidious power, set against one of the most tumultuous episodes in Boston’s history.” 

Steve: A liquidus piano album by Mary Lou Williams, Zodiac Suite. The 1945 album seamlessly mixes classical and jazz influences throughout 12 pieces, each named for a different astrological sign. 

Podcast production by Jared Downing. Production assistance by Kat Hong. 

Hosts

Dana Stephens, Julia Turner, Stephen Metcalf

Need to set up your Slate Plus feed? If you subscribed through Slate.com, check out our FAQ at slate.com/podcastfaqs for easy instructions. Members subscribed via Apple Podcasts get automatic access—no setup required.

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On this week’s show, Extreme Friends of the Pod and co-authors of The World Only Spins Forward, Isaac Butler and Dan Kois, fill in for Dana Stevens and Julia Turner. The hosts begin by dissecting The Zone of Interest, filmmaker Jonathan Glazer’s audacious movie about the Holocaust that’s told through the lens of Nazi commandant Rudolf Höss and his wife Hedwig as they live their somewhat ordinary lives in a compound outside of Auschwitz. The film has garnered both praise and severe critique from critics, many of whom are split on Glazer’s detached aesthetic and imaginative approach to depicting genocide. The Zone of Interest has racked up five Oscar nominations, including Best Picture and Best Director. Then, the three dive into Nyad, the (maybe?) true story of marathon swimmer Diana Nyad, as she attempts to swim unassisted from Cuba to Florida. Annette Bening stars in the titular role alongside Jodie Foster, both of whom are up for Oscars (Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress, respectively). Finally, what is a good director, anyway? What does it look like, what does it mean, and is there a difference between producing, screenwriting, and directing – or is it some strange amalgamation of all three? These questions come from a listener, Emily, and the panel attempts to answer them. 

In the exclusive Slate Plus segment, the panel discusses their film preferences while airborne, inspired by David Mack’s essay for Slate, “What Makes a Perfect ‘Plane Movie’?”

Email us at culturefest@slate.com. 

Outro music: "Pull Me Out" by Mike Stringer.

Endorsements:

Isaac: Dheepan (2015), an exquisitely directed movie from filmmaker Jacques Audiard. In it, three Tamil refugees must pose as a family to flee war-torn Sri Lanka but land in a Paris suburb blighted by drugs. 

Dan: For anyone in or heading to New York, check out Cole Escola’s play “Oh Mary!” The comedian stars as a miserable, suffocated Mary Todd Lincoln and takes place in the weeks leading up to Abraham Lincoln’s assassination. (You can also find Escola’s episode of Slate’s Working podcast here.) 

Steve: Rebecca Solnit’s meditation on the Bay Area, loneliness, and the human impulse towards succession: “In the Shadow of Silicon Valley” for the London Review of Books. 

Podcast production by Cameron Drews and Jared Downing. Production assistance by Kat Hong. 

Hosts

Isaac Butler, Dan Kois, Stephen Metcalf

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