Fascism in Cinema: Past Future Present

About this episode

The episode explores the theme of fascism in cinema, particularly through the lens of science fiction films.

As I started to look to 2026, I knew there was still more to cover in this series beyond what we hit upon in the five episodes last year in discussing authoritarianism in cinema. One of the richest genres doing that was science fiction which, coincidentally, is what led to my emphasis on the genre this year. With such a vast subject, there was only one choice to join me on this episode- the person who started this series with me, Jason from Binge Movies and The Slashers . This is probably the most obvious lineup we've had yet, but when you have movies like Fritz Lang's "Metropolis" , John Carpenter's "They Live" and Paul Verhoeven's "Starship Troopers" , you already have not just compelling films to watch, but a wealth of depth to cover. I hope you enjoy!

People in this episode

Host: Brian Skutle

Guest: Jason

Topics covered

• fascism
• cinema
• science fiction
• authoritarianism
• film analysis

Keywords

• fascism
• cinema
• science fiction
• authoritarianism
• film analysis
• Metropolis
• They Live
• Starship Troopers

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Binge Movies, The Slashers

Books & works: Metropolis, They Live, Starship Troopers

More episodes of Sonic Cinema Podcast

• Fascism in Cinema: Into a World of Conspiracy · May 26, 2026 · 2h 19m
• Atlanta Film Festival 2026 · May 15, 2026 · 45 min
• Why Sci-Fi? · March 27, 2026 · 15 min
• Oscar Thoughts with Amanda Spears and Brian's Top 10 of 2025 · March 14, 2026 · 1h 53m
• Discussing "Network" at 50 · February 25, 2026 · 1h 34m
• Discussing "To Catch a Thief" · February 13, 2026 · 55 min