You Are Good

Heartwarming hilarity ensues when a quirky sex-worker helps a corporate raider get over his daddy issues. Join us and special guest Maggie Rose in conversation about Pretty Woman. You can find Maggie on Twitter and Instagram . You can find her podcast Salute the Songbird here ! We made a  playlist to accompany this episode! It's comprised of songs that come to mind when we all think about this mov...

We discuss all things Rain Man—from the plentitude of dad issues to the many things it got wrong about autism—with journalist Eric Michael Garcia. Bonus: We also love on Oliver Sacks super, super hard. Eric's book We Are Not Broken: Changing the Conversation About Autism will be out later this year. You can find Eric on Twitter here. We made a  playlist to accompany this episode! It's comprised of...

We take a close look at The Shining —both the Stephen King classic and the Stanley Kubrick classic—and discuss Jack Torrance's multiple shortcomings in the fatherhood department. We made a  playlist to accompany this episode! It's comprised of songs that come to mind when we all think about this movie. Why Are Dads is a show in which hosts Sarah Marshall and Alex Steed attempt to understand what t...

It is about good dads and bad dads; present dads and absent dads; biological dads and adoptive dads. Join us as we discuss Marvel dads and daddies, space losers, mediocre white dude heroes, and  Guardians of the Galaxy with Fangirl Jeanne! We made a  playlist to accompany this episode! It's comprised of songs that come to mind when we all think about this movie. You can find  Fangirl Jeanne online...

Clarice Starling was a revelation while the portrayal of "Buffalo Bill" became a bane for many trans people coming of age. The impeccably constructed film is the gold standard of copaganda. We unpack The Silence of the Lambs' complicated legacy with Harmony Colangelo! We made a  playlist to accompany this episode! It's comprised of songs that come to mind when we all think about this movie. You ca...

A few Halfling hippies assemble an eclectic fellowship and go on the adventure of a lifetime. Dads and daddies abound. We talk Hobbits, fan fiction, thirsting for Viggo, and The Lord of the Rings with our pal Talia Lavin. You can find Talia's book Culture Warlords here . You can find Talia on  Twitter here. We made a  playlist to accompany this episode! It's comprised of songs that come to mind wh...

One time in the 1990s a scary litigator melted the hearts of millions of kids by reminding his daughter that "you divorce wives, not kids." We discuss Mel Horowitz—the loveliest shouty dad in popular cinema—Cher, Josh, Tai, Murray, Travis and the rest of the Clueless gang with our pal Kristofer Thomas. You can Kristofer on  Twitter and on  TikTok ! We made a  playlist to accompany this episode ! I...

It's a movie about a big, messy sweetie who can't get out of his own way and all of the folks who suffer as a result. We talk The Wrestler, alcoholic dads, and more with the wonderful Gaby Dunn. You can Gaby on Instagram and on TikTok ! We made a playlist to accompany this episode ! It's comprised of songs that come to mind when we all think about this movie. Why Are Dads is a show in which hosts...

An effervescent dark comedy that addresses the crushing nature of patriarchy while also paying tribute to ABBA on a number of levels? We gushed about  Muriel's Wedding with the endlessly marvelous Laura Lippman. You can find Laura's books here, and you can find Laura on Twitter here ! Why Are Dads is a show in which hosts Sarah Marshall and Alex Steed attempt to understand what the hell it means t...

A bunch of men have competing views on how best to parent their city, though they all agree the task of dadding around is a thankless, back-breaking, and secretive operation. A lovable anarchist literally tells the Bat Dad that they complete each other. We unpack the plethora of dad issues presented in Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight with the delightful Aubrey Gordon. You can find  Maintenance...

We're putting last week's episode of Shootin' the Shit w. Why Are Dads [our  Patreon bonus series] over here on the main feed because it sounds like a lot of y'all are dealing with some of that heavy-heavy and a few folks said it was helpful for them to hear and think about. Also, it's not just heavy stuff! We also talk about Oceans 11 and Crash Bandicoot . Why Are Dads is a show in which hosts Sa...

10 Things I Hate About You is Shakespeare seen through a 90s teen comedy lens and it remains such a treat. Along with special guest Sanpriti Ireland, we talk about Kat, her over-protective dad, Heath Ledger, and teen movies that don't treat their protagonists like scary humping machines. You can find Sanpriti  on Instagram here ! And her Patreon here. Why Are Dads is a show in which hosts Sarah Ma...

A group of men have some feelings, don't know what to do with them, and get everyone around them into a big mess. Sound familiar? We discuss Fargo, what me mean by "straight men", and the great Marge Gunderson with Clementine Ford. You can find Clementine on Instagram here ! And here is Big Sister Hotline ! Why Are Dads is a show in which hosts Sarah Marshall and Alex Steed attempt to understand w...

Is it possible that sometimes folks get so carried away in representing their causes that they overlook the humanity of the people about whom they purport to care? We discuss the criminally underrated Citizen Ruth , the abortion debate, and the heavenly Laura Dern with our wonderful friend Candace Jane Opper. You can find Candace's book Certain and Impossible Events  here ! You can find Candace on...

A series about a broken, sad man who expects way way more from everyone around him? Who lives by a convoluted code? The Sawniverse is about a perpetually disappointed dad and all of the kids who break themselves trying to please him. We talk all this and more with Jamelle Bouie! You can find Jamelle's  work here ! You can find Jamelle on  Twitter and on Instagram . Why Are Dads is a show in which...

We are joined by Emma Copley Eisenberg for a discussion about intersections of fate, Aimee Mann, the enduring beauty of Philip Seymour Hoffman, and one of the most sprawling movies about unpacking dad relationships of all time! Join us as we unpack Magnolia. You can find Emma's work, included her book The Third Rainbow Girl, here ! You can find Emma on  Twitter and on  Instagram . Why Are Dads is...

We meant to take this week off but then a thing happened. Musician, podcaster and public personality John Roderick struck a collective nerve by telling a story about his daughter, beans, and a can opener. In doing so he became known to many as "Bean Dad". We use this surprise phenomenon, and how and why it resonated negatively for many, to talk about "teachable moments", anxiety, trauma and collec...

We are joined by Claire Comstock-Gay (AKA Madame Clairevoyant) for a discussion about the cuckoo-bananas masterpiece that is Moonstruck. Fate! Stars! Chaos! Love! Lust! 80s New York! Men are wolves and they are afraid of death. This one has it all! You can find Claire's horoscope column on The Cut here . You can find her book Madame Clairevoyant's Guide to the Stars here . You can find Claire on ...

Attention-seeking, resentment, a healthy desire for retribution, and boundless parallels to the Trump debacle. Also, is Batman Returns in fact the most anti-corporate superhero movie ever made? Join Sarah and Alex as they unpack all this and more. Why Are Dads is a show in which hosts Sarah Marshall and Alex Steed attempt to understand what the hell it means to be the grown children of dads and ot...

Join Sarah, Alex and guest Anne Thériault as they discuss abandonment issues and anxieties about the horror of the 'urban' being unleashed upon the suburbs and threatening THE CHILDREN. This week's movie, of course, is Home Alone. Anne is a feminist writer and author based in Toronto. Why Are Dads has gone international once again! You can find Anne on  Twitter and on  Instagram . Why Are Dads is...

Join Sarah, Alex and guest Mara Wilson as they discuss "gleaming sex", deranged easter bunnies, and Jim Jones' connection to the America portrayed in the 1983 holiday classic A Christmas Story . You can find Mara on  Twitter and on  Instagram . You can find Mara's book Where Am I Now? here . Why Are Dads is a show in which hosts Sarah Marshall and Alex Steed attempt to understand what the hell it...

It's a movie about a father who drives himself mad by holding himself to unrealistic holiday expectations, sure, but is it possible that there could be some daddy issues to unpack? Join us and guest  Sovereign Syre as we talk about National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation. You can find Sovereign on  Twitter and on  Instagram . Why Are Dads is a show in which hosts Sarah Marshall and Alex Steed attemp...

Clear and Present Danger is a movie about a CIA agent that stands up to corruption, sure, but is it possible that this movie about a convictions-addled father also has some daddy issues to unpack? We were joined by very special guest Jamelle Bouie —New York Times columnist and NBC political analyst—to discuss this 1994 political thriller classic. You can find Jamelle on Twitter and on Instagram (h...

This is the latest installment of our Patreon-only chats that we wanted to share with y'all because it's the Sunday before Covid Thanksgiving and things are weird! You could probably use a little Bayside in your life, so here we are. If this is the sort of things that appeals to y'all, we have weekly conversations about odds and ends over at our Patreon account. We call these chats "Shootin' the S...

Tim Burton's Big Fish is about a man who hopes to get a better sense of who is yarn-spinning father is. Are there larger truths in our parents’ self-constructed myths? In their “amusing lies”? Who were our parents before we were born, anyway? Is it possible to get to know those people? It's another movie about a dad so on the nose with its themes that it is impossible to open with a pithy line abo...