Commotion with Elamin Abdelmahmoud

'Tis the season for holiday movies, and the group chat is here and they're not all Grinches. Thomas Leblanc, Radheyan Simonpillai and Kathryn VanArendonk wade through what deserves your time and how holiday movies have changed. They also chat with Elamin about The Sticky, the new TV series based on the infamous $18 million dollar maple syrup heist in Quebec.

As Moana 2 breaks box office records, a critique that came up during the first Moana movie is resurfacing - how the movie flattens the identities and the traditions of indigenous Pacific Islanders. Anne Keala Kelly, an Indigenous Hawaiian journalist, podcaster and filmmaker, shares why she thinks Disney can do better.

"Brain rot" is the Oxford word of the year. Maybe you know a bit of what that feels like in this world where social media plays a gigantic role in our lives. Culture writers Rebecca Jenkins, Jackson Weaver & Mel Woods share some personal experiences of brain rot and what it says about this moment that we're in.

Writers Guild of Canada president Bruce Smith and guild member Anthony Q. Farrell join Elamin to discuss a recent experiment where the WGC fed famous lines from Canadian movies and TV shows into ChatGPT to see if the AI could improve upon them, and while the results were predictably awkward and humorous, they highlight the threats that professional screenwriters face as AI continues to encroach on the entertainment industry. Plus, Alison Herman discusses the latest installment in the Dune franchise: HBO’s ‘Dune: Prophecy.’

The world of book publishing is about to get disrupted in a big way. There’s a startup that wants to use AI to edit, proofread, design and distribute 8-thousand books next year. Guest host Radheyan Simonpillai chats with book industry insiders Jen Sookfong Lee and Nathan Maharaj about how AI is shaping the future of book publishing. Plus, the movie Titanic gets the musical treatment and recasts Céline Dion as the story’s main star. Thomas Leblanc reviews ‘Titanique’ opening in Toronto this week.

The Moana sequel is in theatres with a whole lot to live up to. How does it measure up to the original? And also, what’s with all the celebrity look alike contests popping up around the world? Elamin chats with culture critics Amil Niazi, Jason P. Frank and Riley Yesno.

With the release of ADVANCE: Canada's Black Music Business Collective’s new report on the state of the industry for Black artists and music professionals in Canada, Elamin is joined by ADVANCE’s Executive Director Keziah Myers and artist and culture critic Ian Kamau to discuss the report and some of its findings. Plus, Elamin is joined by film & television critic Leila Latif to talk about Silo season 2, and why the series has such loyal fans and what it says about the moment we're in now.

With Kendrick Lamar’s surprise release of a brand new album, and Drake launching a legal petition accusing Universal Music Group and Spotify of inflating the popularity of Kendrick’s Drake diss track ‘Not Like Us,’ Elamin is joined by culture critics David Dennis Jr., Pablo The Don, and Matt Amha to review Kendrick’s new album and unpack this latest chapter in his feud with Drake.

Culture critics Cristina Escobar, Sarah-Tai Black and Reanna Cruz review the polarizing Netflix crime musical Emilia Pérez, which tells the story of a transgender cartel boss in Mexico.

This month marks the 40th anniversary of 'Do They Know It’s Christmas?' the all-star UK benefit single for Ethiopia famine relief that became a defining moment in the intersection between celebrity and charity. However, despite raising millions of dollars for Ethiopia, the song has come to be seen by many as perpetuating negative stereotypes of Africa. Culture writer Nels Abbey and music journalist Maura Johnston reflect on the song’s legacy—as well as a whole new controversy surrounding the new 40th-anniversary version of the song. Plus, Nick Newman, managing editor for The Film Stage, attended the screening of 'Rust' and joins Elamin to talk about the experience of watching a movie that’s become so intertwined with tragedy.