"A 17-Hour Chronological Playlist of Pink Floyd Albums: The Evolution of the Band Revealed in 209 Tracks (1967-2014)." Open Culture (March 27, 2018)
Baraka, Ajamu, Eli Kane and Pamela Spees. "Pipeline Resistance Groups and the film On A Knife Edge; Perpetual War and the Anti-War Movement." Law and Disorder (March 18, 2018) ["Pipeline Resistance Groups and the film On A Knife Edge: It’s now more than one year since law enforcement evicted the last Dakota Access Pipeline resistance camps. The pipeline was near completion and was supposed to cross sacred Indian land in South Dakota in order to bring Canadian tar sand oil from north to south through the United States. Then the project was stalled by a tremendous solidarity movement lead by indigenous peoples along with their allies only to be green lighted by the newly elected Trump administration which has proven to be a handmaiden of the fossil fuel industry. Guest – Eli Kane, a Brooklyn-based producer who has worked in film and music for 15 years. He has made two other documentaries for PBS about land rights and food sovereignty, including Land Rush, which won a Peabody Award in 2013. Guest – Attorney Pamela Spees is an attorney with the Center for Constitutional Rights and represents environmental justice groups opposing the efforts of Tigerswan, a private military company which worked with corporate and governmental entities at Standing Rock in an attempt to suppress the movement against the pipeline, to operate in Louisiana.
Perpetual War and the Anti-War Movement: The United States of America has been in a perpetual state of war since September 11, 2001 and before that almost continuously since 1918. The United States has overthrown democratically elected governments it could not control since the invasion of Mexico in 1848. It has overturned elected government and assassinated or attempted to assassinate many heads of foreign states. World War I was a massive slaughter between imperial powers with the United States, France, Britain and Russia on one side against Germany and the Austro-Hungarian Empire on the other. In one week alone, Great Britain lost 250,000 young men. The war wiped out almost an entire generation. It had been billed as “the war to end all wars.“ November 11th is known as the armistice between the hostile countries and was made a national holiday to venerate peace. It was called Armistice Day. But by 1953 Armistice Day was turned into “Veterans’ Day” and fighting was glorified. Donald Trump plans to spend $30 million on a massive military parade in Washington DC this coming November 11, Veterans’ Day. Tanks, missiles and troops will be paraded through the streets of our nations’ capital in a show of military force and adulation of Trump. A coalition of antiwar organizations are planning mass actions against this military parade and the normalization of war, violence and authoritarianism Guest – Ajamu Baraka, an initiator and leader of the Black Alliance for Peace, an organization which is part of the coalition. He has also just returned from a meeting of international leaders because the USA’s involvement of a possible overthrow of the government of Venezuela. Ajamu Baraka helped organize a conference in Baltimore Last month concerning USA’s 800 bases abroad particularly the new ones in Africa."]
Dunbar-Ortiz, Roxanne. An Indigenous People's History of the United States. Beacon Press, 2014.
Ettachfini, Leila. "9 Feminist Films From Around the World on Netflix." Broadly (March 8, 2018)
Gates, Racquel and Kristen J.Warner. "Wakanda Forever: The Pleasures, The Politics, and The Problems." Film Quarterly (March 9, 2018)
LaBruce, Bruce. "Academy of the Underrated: Man On a Swing." Talkhouse (March 6, 2018)
Rubin, Peter and Angela Watercutter. "Ok, We Need to Talk About Ready Player One." Wired (March 30, 2018)
Sweeney, R. Emmet. "Just the Facts: Directed by Phil Karlson." Filmstruck (March 2018)
Friday, March 30, 2018
Wednesday, March 28, 2018
Dialogic Cinephilia - March 28, 2018
"10 Superb Trans Films From the Last 10 Years." Dirty Movies (March 10, 2018)
Currie, Morgan. "Buried, Altered, Silenced: 4 Ways Government Climate Information Has Changed Since Trump Took Office." Desmog (March 27, 2018)
Dunbar-Ortiz, Roxanne. "In Conversation with Nick Estes." Lannan Lectures (October 11, 2017) ["Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz is known for her lifelong commitment to national and international social justice issues. She has been active in the international Indigenous movement for more than four decades, working with Indigenous communities on sovereignty and land rights and helping to build the international Indigenous movement. She is Professor Emerita of Ethnic Studies at California State University, East Bay. She is the author of numerous books and articles on indigenous peoples’ right to self-determination, including Roots of Resistance: A History of Land Tenure in New Mexico, The Great Sioux Nation, and An Indigenous Peoples’ History of the United States, which received the 2015 American Book Award. A new book, Loaded: A Disarming History of the Second Amendment is forthcoming in January."]
Greenhill, Richard. "The Islands and the Whales." Dirty Movies (March 27, 2018)
Hope, Mat. "Web of Power: Cambridge Analytica and the Climate Science Denial Network Lobbying for Brexit and Trump." Desmog (March 21, 2018)
Martin, Patrick. "The CIA Democrats." World Socialist Web Site (March 7-9, 2018)
Tolentino, Jia. "The Gig Economy Celebrates Working Yourself to Death." The New Yorker (March 22, 2017)
Currie, Morgan. "Buried, Altered, Silenced: 4 Ways Government Climate Information Has Changed Since Trump Took Office." Desmog (March 27, 2018)
Dunbar-Ortiz, Roxanne. "In Conversation with Nick Estes." Lannan Lectures (October 11, 2017) ["Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz is known for her lifelong commitment to national and international social justice issues. She has been active in the international Indigenous movement for more than four decades, working with Indigenous communities on sovereignty and land rights and helping to build the international Indigenous movement. She is Professor Emerita of Ethnic Studies at California State University, East Bay. She is the author of numerous books and articles on indigenous peoples’ right to self-determination, including Roots of Resistance: A History of Land Tenure in New Mexico, The Great Sioux Nation, and An Indigenous Peoples’ History of the United States, which received the 2015 American Book Award. A new book, Loaded: A Disarming History of the Second Amendment is forthcoming in January."]
Greenhill, Richard. "The Islands and the Whales." Dirty Movies (March 27, 2018)
Hope, Mat. "Web of Power: Cambridge Analytica and the Climate Science Denial Network Lobbying for Brexit and Trump." Desmog (March 21, 2018)
Martin, Patrick. "The CIA Democrats." World Socialist Web Site (March 7-9, 2018)
Tolentino, Jia. "The Gig Economy Celebrates Working Yourself to Death." The New Yorker (March 22, 2017)
Tuesday, March 27, 2018
Dialogic Cinephilia - March 27, 2018
Asher-Shapiro, Avi. "Trump Administration Fights Effort to Unionize Uber Drivers." The Intercept (March 26, 2018)
Berger, Kevin. "Why Do So Many Scientists Want to Be Filmmakers?" Nautilus (March 22, 2018)
Bursztynski, Maurice. " Interview with Darian Sahanaja (Brian Wilson’s band and musical consultant for Love And Mercy)." See Hear (April 17, 2016) ["In April, Maurice interviewed Darian Sahanaja (Wondermints and Brian Wilson Band) for Love That Album episode 89 on the final day of Brian's 2016 tour of Australia. The last part of the interview featured a discussion about Darian's work as musical consultant on Love And Mercy.With Tim and Bernie's blessing, Maurice thought it would be a good idea to present this segment as a bonus episode of See Hear. Darian coached the brilliant Paul Dano to play piano in a style similar to Brian, and came up with the idea to use real musicians rather than actors to play The Wrecking Crew as they recorded Pet Sounds. Listen to Darian discuss the creative process in his work on the film."]
Crockford, Kade. "Real Sanctuary Means Ending Mass Policing." The Dig (March 25, 2018) ["Perhaps nothing has more defined the monstrosity of Donald Trump than his racist demonization and targeting of immigrants from Mexico, Muslim-majority countries, and those nations he deems "shitholes." But what's seldom reported is that one of the key mechanisms the administration has used to target immigrants was rolled out under Barack Obama. It's called Secure Communities, and it's the culmination of decades of policy-making and politicking that have intertwined the US systems of mass incarceration and immigrant enforcement — facilitating the growth of both. To fight both mass deportation and mass incarceration, localities and states must move beyond what's currently defined as sanctuary..."]
Danner, Chas. "People Are Sharing Fake Photos of Emma González Tearing Up the Constitution." Daily Intelligencer (March 25, 2018)
"Dive Deeper into Blade Runner 2049 with Roger Deakins, ASC, BSC." American Cinematographer (March 5, 2018)
Dredge, Allison. "Phantom Thread: An Insight Into Autism and Relationships." Clothes on Film (March 23, 2018) [ I'm struck by the fact that the author is willfully ignoring a key ingredient (action) in this cinematic relationship?]
Flannery, Tim. "Raised by Wolves." New York Review of Books (April 5, 2018)
Roderick, Leonie. "The Groundbreaking Activism of Sex Workers." Broadly (March 8, 2017) ["Without sex workers, our activist landscape would look dramatically different—but don’t expect to read about their contribution in the history books."]
Shelby, Tommie and Brandon M. Terry. "MLK, Political Philosopher." The Dig (March 21, 2018) ["Tommie Shelby and Brandon M. Terry talk about their new book To Shape a New World: Essays on the Political Philosophy of Martin Luther King, Jr. King is often remembered for his soaring oratory. But the commonplace emphasis on his rhetoric in place of his ideas too often allows enemies of King's agenda to domesticate him or, worse, to weaponize his taken-out-of-context words to bolster the very forces of racism and oppression that King had struggled to defeat. Dan asks Shelby and Terry about King’s theory of nonviolence (more complicated than you might think), his debate with the Black Power movement, and his thinking on gender, hope, political economy, Beloved Community and more."]
Berger, Kevin. "Why Do So Many Scientists Want to Be Filmmakers?" Nautilus (March 22, 2018)
Bursztynski, Maurice. " Interview with Darian Sahanaja (Brian Wilson’s band and musical consultant for Love And Mercy)." See Hear (April 17, 2016) ["In April, Maurice interviewed Darian Sahanaja (Wondermints and Brian Wilson Band) for Love That Album episode 89 on the final day of Brian's 2016 tour of Australia. The last part of the interview featured a discussion about Darian's work as musical consultant on Love And Mercy.With Tim and Bernie's blessing, Maurice thought it would be a good idea to present this segment as a bonus episode of See Hear. Darian coached the brilliant Paul Dano to play piano in a style similar to Brian, and came up with the idea to use real musicians rather than actors to play The Wrecking Crew as they recorded Pet Sounds. Listen to Darian discuss the creative process in his work on the film."]
Crockford, Kade. "Real Sanctuary Means Ending Mass Policing." The Dig (March 25, 2018) ["Perhaps nothing has more defined the monstrosity of Donald Trump than his racist demonization and targeting of immigrants from Mexico, Muslim-majority countries, and those nations he deems "shitholes." But what's seldom reported is that one of the key mechanisms the administration has used to target immigrants was rolled out under Barack Obama. It's called Secure Communities, and it's the culmination of decades of policy-making and politicking that have intertwined the US systems of mass incarceration and immigrant enforcement — facilitating the growth of both. To fight both mass deportation and mass incarceration, localities and states must move beyond what's currently defined as sanctuary..."]
Danner, Chas. "People Are Sharing Fake Photos of Emma González Tearing Up the Constitution." Daily Intelligencer (March 25, 2018)
"Dive Deeper into Blade Runner 2049 with Roger Deakins, ASC, BSC." American Cinematographer (March 5, 2018)
Dredge, Allison. "Phantom Thread: An Insight Into Autism and Relationships." Clothes on Film (March 23, 2018) [ I'm struck by the fact that the author is willfully ignoring a key ingredient (action) in this cinematic relationship?]
Roderick, Leonie. "The Groundbreaking Activism of Sex Workers." Broadly (March 8, 2017) ["Without sex workers, our activist landscape would look dramatically different—but don’t expect to read about their contribution in the history books."]
Shelby, Tommie and Brandon M. Terry. "MLK, Political Philosopher." The Dig (March 21, 2018) ["Tommie Shelby and Brandon M. Terry talk about their new book To Shape a New World: Essays on the Political Philosophy of Martin Luther King, Jr. King is often remembered for his soaring oratory. But the commonplace emphasis on his rhetoric in place of his ideas too often allows enemies of King's agenda to domesticate him or, worse, to weaponize his taken-out-of-context words to bolster the very forces of racism and oppression that King had struggled to defeat. Dan asks Shelby and Terry about King’s theory of nonviolence (more complicated than you might think), his debate with the Black Power movement, and his thinking on gender, hope, political economy, Beloved Community and more."]
Monday, March 26, 2018
Dialogic Cinephilia - March 26, 2018
North of Center (Free North Side community newspaper founded by Danny Mayer) was a heterotopian moment/space of critical, independent, media reporting in Lexington, KY and it generously provided dissident writers a space to provide insights & critiques ignored in Lexington's broader print/visual media. For me, in writing for NOC, it provided the opportunity to reflect on what I was seeing in the world, yet rarely heard reported. Below is an example of a 3 part report on a trip to protest the 2009 G20 Summit in Pittsburgh, PA. Re-reading this article I remember how pivotal this experience was in my political thinking and how I was irrevocably changed by participating in this protest. North of Center provided me with the space to reflect and come-to-terms with what we experienced/witnessed. Most importantly, NOC was a vital source of in-depth, long form, critical, local/regional reporting - a style of reporting virtually non-existent in our current media environment. I thank everyone that was involved with producing and distributing NOC - you made a difference!
Benton, Michael Dean. "What I Learned in Pittsburgh: The 2009 G20 Summit and Protests (Part 1)." North of Center (October 7, 2009): 1, 3.
---. "A Different Hope: What I Learned in Pittsburgh (Part 2)." North of Center (October 21, 2009): 1, 3.
---. "Letter to the Editor." North of Center (November 4, 2009): 7.
Bordwell, David. "New colors to sing: Damien Chazelle on films and filmmaking." Observations on Film Art (March 6, 2018)
Bursztynski, Maurice and Shannon Harley. "The Police's Synchronicity." Love That Album #109 (February 26, 2018) ["If we’re discussing an album with songs about stalking, emotional control of another human being, Carl Jung, the Loch Ness Monster appearing as a result of a suburbanite’s frustration with life and Oedipus, you’d probably surmise Love That Album podcast is focusing on the Synchronicity by The Police….and you’d be right. For LTA episode 109, I am joined by songwriter and singer Shannon Hurley (aka Numbers Girl on All Time Top Ten Podcast) to talk about the final studio album released in 1983 by Gordon Sumner, Andy Summers and Stewart Copeland. Synchronicity was hugely popular in its day, but for some reason, the band’s detractors have seen them as a singles band at best and pretend-punk at worst. Yes, their singles were hugely popular on the radio (a cardinal sin for the cool kids), and yes, their albums did contain filler. However, many of the deeper cuts on all 5 albums revealed some gems played by 3 fantastic musicians who knew the dynamics of how to play as a band, not just 3 excellent musicians trying to outdo each other. All 3 wrote songs, some blackly comical, some too earnest, but none of it seemingly the sort of material that would be of interest to the teenagers who were buying the records. Shannon and I delve into Synchronicity track by track (a rare return to an earlier LTA format) to discuss the album’s themes, musicianship, and whether it’s dated."]
Cole, Matthew, et al. "The Lyin', The Rich, and the Warmongers." The Intercepted (March 14, 2018) ["This week on Intercepted: Exxon Mobil is out at the State Department. A radical Christian ideologue is in. And a veteran CIA officer who tortured detainees and set up the CIA black sites after 9/11 is slated to take the helm at Langley. And all of this happened in one fell swoop on Tuesday morning. The Intercept’s Matthew Cole and Jeremy analyze the major re-shuffle in Trumpland and what it means for the future of the planet. Rep. Jan Schakowsky, who led the investigation of Erik Prince and Blackwater for years in Congress, analyzes the ongoing scandal over his alleged role in the Trump era and explains why she had her house swept for surveillance when she was investigating Prince. Musical artists Ana Tijoux and Lila Downs talk about the politics of colonialism, neoliberalism, and revolution and their new collaboration on the song, “Tinta Roja.” And, fresh off her stellar debut on 60 Minutes, Education Secretary Betsy DeVos stars in “Kindergarten Cop.”"]
"March For Our Lives Special Broadcast." Democracy Now (March 24, 2018) ["Democracy Now! was on the ground broadcasting live from the March For Our Lives in Washington, D.C. on March 24, 2018, a historic event created, inspired and led by students. The four-hour special program featured the voices of students and people of all ages who converged on the capital and over 800 other cities around the world to demand action on gun control."]
Pinkerton, Nick. "Interview: Ashley McKenzie." Film Comment (March 7, 2018)
Sanders, Bernie. "Talk About Inequality." Deconstructed (March 23, 2018) ["The Intercept’s Mehdi Hasan sits down with former presidential candidate and independent Sen. Bernie Sanders to talk poverty, inequality, media bias, and the 2020 presidential election."]
Sheehan, Helena and Sheamus Sweeney. "The Wire and the World." Jacobin (March 10, 2018) ["No other program has ever done anything remotely like what this one does, namely to portray the social, political, and economic life of an American city with the scope, observational precision, and moral vision of great literature. . . . The drama repeatedly cuts from the top of Baltimore’s social structure to its bottom, from political fund-raisers in the white suburbs to the subterranean squat of a homeless junkie. . . . The Wire’s political science is as brilliant as its sociology. It leaves The West Wing, and everything else television has tried to do on this subject, in the dust."]
Benton, Michael Dean. "What I Learned in Pittsburgh: The 2009 G20 Summit and Protests (Part 1)." North of Center (October 7, 2009): 1, 3.
---. "A Different Hope: What I Learned in Pittsburgh (Part 2)." North of Center (October 21, 2009): 1, 3.
---. "Letter to the Editor." North of Center (November 4, 2009): 7.
Bordwell, David. "New colors to sing: Damien Chazelle on films and filmmaking." Observations on Film Art (March 6, 2018)
Bursztynski, Maurice and Shannon Harley. "The Police's Synchronicity." Love That Album #109 (February 26, 2018) ["If we’re discussing an album with songs about stalking, emotional control of another human being, Carl Jung, the Loch Ness Monster appearing as a result of a suburbanite’s frustration with life and Oedipus, you’d probably surmise Love That Album podcast is focusing on the Synchronicity by The Police….and you’d be right. For LTA episode 109, I am joined by songwriter and singer Shannon Hurley (aka Numbers Girl on All Time Top Ten Podcast) to talk about the final studio album released in 1983 by Gordon Sumner, Andy Summers and Stewart Copeland. Synchronicity was hugely popular in its day, but for some reason, the band’s detractors have seen them as a singles band at best and pretend-punk at worst. Yes, their singles were hugely popular on the radio (a cardinal sin for the cool kids), and yes, their albums did contain filler. However, many of the deeper cuts on all 5 albums revealed some gems played by 3 fantastic musicians who knew the dynamics of how to play as a band, not just 3 excellent musicians trying to outdo each other. All 3 wrote songs, some blackly comical, some too earnest, but none of it seemingly the sort of material that would be of interest to the teenagers who were buying the records. Shannon and I delve into Synchronicity track by track (a rare return to an earlier LTA format) to discuss the album’s themes, musicianship, and whether it’s dated."]
Cole, Matthew, et al. "The Lyin', The Rich, and the Warmongers." The Intercepted (March 14, 2018) ["This week on Intercepted: Exxon Mobil is out at the State Department. A radical Christian ideologue is in. And a veteran CIA officer who tortured detainees and set up the CIA black sites after 9/11 is slated to take the helm at Langley. And all of this happened in one fell swoop on Tuesday morning. The Intercept’s Matthew Cole and Jeremy analyze the major re-shuffle in Trumpland and what it means for the future of the planet. Rep. Jan Schakowsky, who led the investigation of Erik Prince and Blackwater for years in Congress, analyzes the ongoing scandal over his alleged role in the Trump era and explains why she had her house swept for surveillance when she was investigating Prince. Musical artists Ana Tijoux and Lila Downs talk about the politics of colonialism, neoliberalism, and revolution and their new collaboration on the song, “Tinta Roja.” And, fresh off her stellar debut on 60 Minutes, Education Secretary Betsy DeVos stars in “Kindergarten Cop.”"]
"March For Our Lives Special Broadcast." Democracy Now (March 24, 2018) ["Democracy Now! was on the ground broadcasting live from the March For Our Lives in Washington, D.C. on March 24, 2018, a historic event created, inspired and led by students. The four-hour special program featured the voices of students and people of all ages who converged on the capital and over 800 other cities around the world to demand action on gun control."]
Pinkerton, Nick. "Interview: Ashley McKenzie." Film Comment (March 7, 2018)
Sanders, Bernie. "Talk About Inequality." Deconstructed (March 23, 2018) ["The Intercept’s Mehdi Hasan sits down with former presidential candidate and independent Sen. Bernie Sanders to talk poverty, inequality, media bias, and the 2020 presidential election."]
Sheehan, Helena and Sheamus Sweeney. "The Wire and the World." Jacobin (March 10, 2018) ["No other program has ever done anything remotely like what this one does, namely to portray the social, political, and economic life of an American city with the scope, observational precision, and moral vision of great literature. . . . The drama repeatedly cuts from the top of Baltimore’s social structure to its bottom, from political fund-raisers in the white suburbs to the subterranean squat of a homeless junkie. . . . The Wire’s political science is as brilliant as its sociology. It leaves The West Wing, and everything else television has tried to do on this subject, in the dust."]
Saturday, March 24, 2018
Dialogic Cinephilia - March 24, 2018
Brea, Jennifer. "Unrest." Film School (October 7, 2017) ["Jennifer Brea is a Harvard PhD student soon to be engaged to the love of her life when she’s struck down by a mysterious fever that leaves her bedridden. She becomes progressively more ill, eventually losing the ability even to sit in a wheelchair, but doctors tell her it’s “all in her head.” Unable to convey the seriousness and depth of her symptoms to her doctor, Jennifer begins a video diary on her iPhone that eventually becomes the feature documentary film Unrest. Once Jennifer is diagnosed with myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME), commonly called chronic fatigue syndrome, she and her new husband, Omar, are left to grapple with how to live in the face of a lifelong illness. Refusing to accept the limitations of bedbound life, Jennifer goes on an inspiring virtual voyage around the world where she finds a hidden community of millions confined to their homes and bedrooms by ME. These patients use the internet, Skype and Facebook to connect to each other — and to offer support and understanding. Many ME patients have experienced uncertainty, confusion and even disbelief from the medical community and society as a whole. After all, it’s easy to ignore a disease when patients are too sick to leave their homes. In Unrest, Jennifer shares her pain and the most intimate moments of her life in order to offer hope and visibility to those who suffer alone in dark, silent rooms. Though Jennifer and Omar may have to accept that they will never live the life they originally dreamed about, together they find resilience, strength, and meaning in their community and each other. Director, subject and activist Jennifer Brea joins us to talk about her journey, illness and her determination to make things better for people living with ME."]
Davis, Nick. "The Workshop." Film Comment (March/April 2018)
Finnerty, Paraic, Linda Freeman and Fiona Green. "Emily Dickinson." Ideas (May 11, 2017) ["Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the life and works of Emily Dickinson, arguably the most startling and original poet in America in the C19th. According to Thomas Wentworth Higginson, her correspondent and mentor, writing 15 years after her death, "Few events in American literary history have been more curious than the sudden rise of Emily Dickinson into a posthumous fame only more accentuated by the utterly recluse character of her life and by her aversion to even a literary publicity." That was in 1891 and, as more of Dickinson's poems were published, and more of her remaining letters, the more the interest in her and appreciation of her grew. With her distinctive voice, her abundance, and her exploration of her private world, she is now seen by many as one of the great lyric poets. "]
Castillo, Monica, et al. "Reckoning with Misogyny." Film Comment Podcast (January 2, 2018) ["Stories about Harvey Weinstein’s misconduct and cover-ups have opened the floodgates of revelations about other figures in the entertainment industry and beyond. Victims have finally been able to come forward and be heard, while the #metoo movement has fueled conversation and action, amidst an Internet outrage machine that can cheapen dialogue. In this episode of The Film Comment Podcast, Digital Producer Violet Lucca was joined by Molly Haskell, author of the landmark 1974 text From Reverence to Rape: The Treatment of Women in the Movies and regular critic to Film Comment; Monica Castillo, the film writer for The New York Times’s Watching; and Aliza Ma, head programmer at the Metrograph Theater, for an in-depth conversation about the implications of this historic moment."]
Hudson, David. "Venice + Toronto 2017: Aronofsky’s Mother!" The Current (September 5, 2017)
Hudson, David. "Venice + Toronto 2017: Haigh’s Lean on Pete." The Current (September 1, 2017)
Lebreton, L., et al. "Evidence that the Great Pacific Garbage Patch is rapidly accumulating plastic." Nature (March 22, 2018)
Lucca, Violet and Sheila O'Malley. "The Phantom Thread." Film Comment Podcast (January 9, 2018) ["“In Paul Thomas Anderson’s work, love can be—quite literally—a miracle,” writes Sheila O’Malley in her January/February 2018 Film Comment cover story, “Love, After a Fashion.” “People are scarred by life, their emotional resilience decimated by disappointments and neglect. But sometimes love is offered and, as Blanche DuBois says, famously, in A Streetcar Named Desire: ‘Sometimes—there’s God—so quickly!’ That’s the redemptive romantic journey of Phantom Thread, where Reynolds says to Alma at one point that she may very well keep his ‘sour heart from choking.’” Of course, Phantom Thread is no familiar story of redemption through romance. O’Malley joins FC Digital Producer Violet Lucca on this week’s Film Comment Podcast to discuss its beguiling, and even radical, twist on a love story."]
son of sofia | trailer from heretic on Vimeo.
Psykou, Elina. "Son of Sofia." Following Films (April 20, 2017) ["After her celebrated debut, “The Eternal Return of Antonis Paraskevas”, Elina Psykou returns with “SON OF SOFIA”, a dark, yet tender coming-of-age fairytale that strikes a masterful balance between realism and dreams, much like its young lead. The story revolves around 11-year-old Misha, who flies from Russia to Athens in the summer of 2004, to join his mother, Sofia, after having spent a long time apart. What he doesn’t know is that there is a father waiting for him there. While Greece is living the Olympic dream, Misha will get violently catapulted into the adult world, riding on the dark side of his favorite fairy tales."]
Wang, Nanfu. "I Am Another You." Film School (October 6, 2017) ["When Chinese filmmaker Nanfu Wang (Hooligan Sparrow) first came to America,Florida seemed like an exotic frontier full of theme parks, prehistoric swamp creatures, and sunburned denizens. As she travels wide-eyed from one city to another, she eventually encounters a charismatic young drifter named Dylan. Fascinated by his rejection of society’s rules and unsure of his past, Nanfu follows Dylan with her camera on a journey that spans years, takes her across America, and explores the meaning of freedom. But as Nanfu delves deeper into Dylan’s world, she discovers something that calls her entire worldview into question. Director, Producer, Cinematographer & Editor Nanfu Wang is an award-winning filmmaker based in New York City. Her feature debut Hooligan Sparrow was shortlisted for the 2017 Academy Award for best documentary feature. Since its premiere at the Sundance Film Festival 2016, Hooligan Sparrow has screened at more than 100 festivals in over 25 countries including Hot Docs, Sheffield, Full Frame, and Human Rights Watch Film Fest. It opened theatrically across North America and was later released on POV, Netflix, Amazon, and iTunes. It has won over twenty awards internationally including a Cinema Eye Honor for the Best Debut Film, the George Polk Award for the journalistic achievement,and the Truer than Fiction Award at the Independent Spirit Awards. Wang was honored by the International Documentary Association with the 2016 Emerging Filmmaker Award. Director Nanfu Wang joins us to talk about Dylan, freedom, travel and her own experience on the streets."]
Friday, March 23, 2018
Dialogic Cinephilia - March 23, 2018
Anderson, Jacob. "Mysterious Skin." Letterboxd (February 26, 2018)
Boxer, Sarah. "Al and Abu Ghraib." Los Angeles Review of Books (March 21, 2018)
Kaplan, Alice. "Albert Camus and The Stranger." Entitled Opinions (May 18, 2016)
Kaye, Julia. "National Academies Report Finds That, Once Again, That Abortions are Safe." ACLU (March 21, 2018)
Nicolini, Kim. "Annihilation: Alex Garland’s Bad Trip Through Dis-ease and Over-Reproduction." Counterpunch (March 2, 2018)
Saba, Aftim. "The Insult: Ziad Doueiri’s Film of Selective Memory." Counterpunch (March 2, 2018)
Talu, Yonca. "Ismael's Ghosts." Film Comment (March/April 2018)
Wilson, Jennifer. "Was Lolita About Race: Vladimir Nabokov on Race in the United States?" Los Angeles Review of Books (October 31, 2016)
Wednesday, March 21, 2018
Dialogic Cinephilia - March 21, 2018
While I would like to focus on the joy I feel at the dawning of the 2018 Spring Equinox at 12:15 PM today, instead I am pulled back into darker thoughts and sadness by the realization that today is the 15th Anniversary of the start of the Iraq War (a war that has not ended despite both Bush II's and Obama's successive claims that it had).
People who think philosophy is useless also tend to think that society does not need to change. If you want to maintain the status quo, teaching people to question everything is a pretty stupid thing to do. (Existential Comics, March 21, 2018)
Ali, Zahra, Matt Howard and Sami Rasouli. "'It Was a Crime': 15 Years After U.S. Invasion, Iraqis Still Face Trauma, Destruction & Violence." Democracy Now (March 20, 2018) ["It was 15 years ago today when the U.S. invaded Iraq on the false pretense that Iraqi President Saddam Hussein was hiding weapons of mass destruction. The attack came despite worldwide protest and a lack of authorization from the United Nations Security Council. At around 5:30 a.m. in Baghdad on March 20, 2003, air raid sirens were heard as the U.S. invasion began. The fighting has yet to end, and the death toll may never be known. Conservative estimates put the Iraqi civilian death toll at 200,000. But some counts range as high as 2 million. In 2006, the British medical journal Lancet estimated 600,000 Iraqis died in just the first 40 months of the war. The U.S. has also lost about 4,500 soldiers in Iraq. Just last week, seven U.S. servicemembers died in a helicopter crash in western Iraq near the Syrian border. The war in Iraq has also destabilized much of the Middle East. Former United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan and others have directly blamed the U.S. invasion of Iraq for the rise of ISIS. We speak to the Iraqi-French sociologist Zahra Ali, who teaches at Rutgers University; Matt Howard, co-director of About Face: Veterans Against the War, the organization formerly known as Iraq Veterans Against the War; and Sami Rasouli, founder and director of the Muslim Peacemaker Teams in Iraq."]
Blackhurst, Alice. "A Drama of Access: On Sebastián Lelio’s A Fantastic Woman." Another Gaze (March 17, 2018)
Buckler, Dana. "Movie Theater Rant Part 6 : Dana Lives." How Is This Movie? (November 27, 2017) [Recently I hosted a screening of The Florida Project and it was a series of absurdities that continued through the next week (not the film, my favorite of 2017, I'm referring to the actual screening). Dana Buckler has been doing a series on his misadventures as a 21st movie watcher (in theaters) and he had an equally strange experience watching The Florida Project. "Dana talks about why his dependency for Coffee put him in a very awkward situation, How much he loved The Florida Project and talks about an odd thing that happened while seeing the movie!"]
Elinson, Elaine. "'Learn the Use of Explosives!': On Jacqueline Jones’s Goddess of Anarchy: The Life and Times of Lucy Parsons, American Radical." Los Angeles Review of Books (March 20, 2018)
"The Enright Files on suffering, sorrow and the search for meaning." Ideas (January 3, 2018) ["This month's edition of The Enright Files explores how the works of Viktor Frankl, Anton Chekhov and Joan Didion wrestle meaning and solace from tragedy, horror and suffering."]
Ganz, John. "As Stalin Lay Dying: On Armando Iannucci’s The Death of Stalin." The Baffler (March 20, 2018)
Hauser, Jeff. "The Do-Nothing Discipline: How political science fell into the thrall of fundamentalist forecasting." The Baffler #38 (March 2018)
Nakhnikian, Elise. "Interview: Laurent Cantet on the Making of The Workshop." Slant (March 19, 2018)
How did the mainstream press get it so wrong? How did the evidence disputing the existence of weapons of mass destruction and the link between Saddam Hussein to 9-11 continue to go largely unreported? "What the conservative media did was easy to fathom; they had been cheerleaders for the White House from the beginning and were simply continuing to rally the public behind the President — no questions asked. How mainstream journalists suspended skepticism and scrutiny remains an issue of significance that the media has not satisfactorily explored," says Moyers. "How the administration marketed the war to the American people has been well covered, but critical questions remain: How and why did the press buy it, and what does it say about the role of journalists in helping the public sort out fact from propaganda?" - Bill Moyers' Journal "Buying the War." (2008)
People who think philosophy is useless also tend to think that society does not need to change. If you want to maintain the status quo, teaching people to question everything is a pretty stupid thing to do. (Existential Comics, March 21, 2018)
Ali, Zahra, Matt Howard and Sami Rasouli. "'It Was a Crime': 15 Years After U.S. Invasion, Iraqis Still Face Trauma, Destruction & Violence." Democracy Now (March 20, 2018) ["It was 15 years ago today when the U.S. invaded Iraq on the false pretense that Iraqi President Saddam Hussein was hiding weapons of mass destruction. The attack came despite worldwide protest and a lack of authorization from the United Nations Security Council. At around 5:30 a.m. in Baghdad on March 20, 2003, air raid sirens were heard as the U.S. invasion began. The fighting has yet to end, and the death toll may never be known. Conservative estimates put the Iraqi civilian death toll at 200,000. But some counts range as high as 2 million. In 2006, the British medical journal Lancet estimated 600,000 Iraqis died in just the first 40 months of the war. The U.S. has also lost about 4,500 soldiers in Iraq. Just last week, seven U.S. servicemembers died in a helicopter crash in western Iraq near the Syrian border. The war in Iraq has also destabilized much of the Middle East. Former United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan and others have directly blamed the U.S. invasion of Iraq for the rise of ISIS. We speak to the Iraqi-French sociologist Zahra Ali, who teaches at Rutgers University; Matt Howard, co-director of About Face: Veterans Against the War, the organization formerly known as Iraq Veterans Against the War; and Sami Rasouli, founder and director of the Muslim Peacemaker Teams in Iraq."]
Blackhurst, Alice. "A Drama of Access: On Sebastián Lelio’s A Fantastic Woman." Another Gaze (March 17, 2018)
Buckler, Dana. "Movie Theater Rant Part 6 : Dana Lives." How Is This Movie? (November 27, 2017) [Recently I hosted a screening of The Florida Project and it was a series of absurdities that continued through the next week (not the film, my favorite of 2017, I'm referring to the actual screening). Dana Buckler has been doing a series on his misadventures as a 21st movie watcher (in theaters) and he had an equally strange experience watching The Florida Project. "Dana talks about why his dependency for Coffee put him in a very awkward situation, How much he loved The Florida Project and talks about an odd thing that happened while seeing the movie!"]
Elinson, Elaine. "'Learn the Use of Explosives!': On Jacqueline Jones’s Goddess of Anarchy: The Life and Times of Lucy Parsons, American Radical." Los Angeles Review of Books (March 20, 2018)
"The Enright Files on suffering, sorrow and the search for meaning." Ideas (January 3, 2018) ["This month's edition of The Enright Files explores how the works of Viktor Frankl, Anton Chekhov and Joan Didion wrestle meaning and solace from tragedy, horror and suffering."]
Ganz, John. "As Stalin Lay Dying: On Armando Iannucci’s The Death of Stalin." The Baffler (March 20, 2018)
Hauser, Jeff. "The Do-Nothing Discipline: How political science fell into the thrall of fundamentalist forecasting." The Baffler #38 (March 2018)
Nakhnikian, Elise. "Interview: Laurent Cantet on the Making of The Workshop." Slant (March 19, 2018)
Monday, March 19, 2018
Dialogic Cinephilia - March 19, 2018
Amend, Alex. "How the Myth of the 'Irish slaves' Became a Favorite Meme of Racists Online." Southern Poverty Law Center (April 19, 2016)
Bowen, Chuck. "Interview: Mathieu Amalric Talks Ismael’s Ghosts and Barbara." Slant (March 19, 2018)
Carter, David. "Annihilation: Depression, Destruction and Transformation." A Place for Film (March 19, 2018)
Hogan, Liam. "Debunking the Imagery of the 'Irish Slaves' Meme." Medium (September 14, 2015)
Jones, Owen. " Kurdish Afrin is democratic and LGBT-friendly. Turkey is crushing it with Britain’s help." The Guardian (March 16, 2018)
Keel, Eli. "How a kiss is not a kiss, and punches are pulled in acting." LEO Weekly (August 2, 2017)
Kirshner, Jonathan. "Who Knew it Could Get Worse?: When Nixon Haunted the New Hollywood." Cineaste (Spring 2018)
Mullen, Stephen. "The Myth of Scottish Slaves." Skeptical Scot (March 4, 2016)
Wamsley, Laurel. "Kansas Scrambles To Change Rules After 6 Teens Enter Governor's Race." The Two-Way (February 9, 2018)
Webber, David. "The Real Reason the Investor Class Hates Pensions." The New York Times (March 5, 2018)
Bowen, Chuck. "Interview: Mathieu Amalric Talks Ismael’s Ghosts and Barbara." Slant (March 19, 2018)
Carter, David. "Annihilation: Depression, Destruction and Transformation." A Place for Film (March 19, 2018)
Hogan, Liam. "Debunking the Imagery of the 'Irish Slaves' Meme." Medium (September 14, 2015)
Jones, Owen. " Kurdish Afrin is democratic and LGBT-friendly. Turkey is crushing it with Britain’s help." The Guardian (March 16, 2018)
Keel, Eli. "How a kiss is not a kiss, and punches are pulled in acting." LEO Weekly (August 2, 2017)
Kirshner, Jonathan. "Who Knew it Could Get Worse?: When Nixon Haunted the New Hollywood." Cineaste (Spring 2018)
Mullen, Stephen. "The Myth of Scottish Slaves." Skeptical Scot (March 4, 2016)
Wamsley, Laurel. "Kansas Scrambles To Change Rules After 6 Teens Enter Governor's Race." The Two-Way (February 9, 2018)
Webber, David. "The Real Reason the Investor Class Hates Pensions." The New York Times (March 5, 2018)
Sunday, March 18, 2018
Dialogic Cinephilia - March 18, 2018
Benton, Michael. Recommended Films of 2011 Letterboxd (Ongoing Archive)
Biggs, Joanna. "In Praise of Mia Hansen-Løve’s Things to Come." Another Gaze (March 16, 2018)
Bursztynski, Maurice, et al. "Love and Mercy." See Hear #25 (February 21, 2016) ["Bill Pohlad’s 2015 biopic of Brian Wilson, Love And Mercy. For the first part of the show, Frank Santopadre of Gilbert Gottfried’s Amazing Colossal Podcast and writer Tish Grier join the See Hear crew to discuss the Murry Wilson School of parenting, mental health issues, the Wrecking Crew, Beach Boys albums that are not Pet Sounds or Smile, and the contributions to the Beach Boys sounds by members that were not Brian Wilson. The second part of the show is devoted to a discussion on the merits of the film. Given the many flaws usually inherent in a biopic (and we name-check a few), how does Love And Mercy compare?"]
The History of Rome [Mike Duncan's "weekly podcast tracing the history of the Roman Empire, beginning with Aeneas's arrival in Italy and ending with the exile of Romulus Augustulus, last Emperor of the Western Roman Empire."]
Biggs, Joanna. "In Praise of Mia Hansen-Løve’s Things to Come." Another Gaze (March 16, 2018)
Bursztynski, Maurice, et al. "Love and Mercy." See Hear #25 (February 21, 2016) ["Bill Pohlad’s 2015 biopic of Brian Wilson, Love And Mercy. For the first part of the show, Frank Santopadre of Gilbert Gottfried’s Amazing Colossal Podcast and writer Tish Grier join the See Hear crew to discuss the Murry Wilson School of parenting, mental health issues, the Wrecking Crew, Beach Boys albums that are not Pet Sounds or Smile, and the contributions to the Beach Boys sounds by members that were not Brian Wilson. The second part of the show is devoted to a discussion on the merits of the film. Given the many flaws usually inherent in a biopic (and we name-check a few), how does Love And Mercy compare?"]
The History of Rome [Mike Duncan's "weekly podcast tracing the history of the Roman Empire, beginning with Aeneas's arrival in Italy and ending with the exile of Romulus Augustulus, last Emperor of the Western Roman Empire."]
"History of the Paris Commune." Marxists Internet Archive (Archive)
Hynes, Eric. "All Things Reconsidered: Revisited and reshaped, old footage fuels new reflections in two Sundance documentaries." Film Comment (March/April 2018)
"Jacques Tati." Director's Club #124 (February 27, 2017)
Jilanu, Zaid. "The Hilarious, Terrifying, British Death of Stalin Shows How American Comedy's Gone Wrong." The Intercept (March 17, 2018)
Jones, Kent. "Labor of Love: Dan Talbot followed his passion for cinema against the tide of a changing industry." Film Comment (March/April 2018)
Lane, Anthony. "The Death of Stalin Dares to Make Evil Funny." The New Yorker (March 19, 2018) ["In Armando Iannucci’s outrageous comedy about the dead tyrant’s underlings, every gag is girded with fear."]
Hynes, Eric. "All Things Reconsidered: Revisited and reshaped, old footage fuels new reflections in two Sundance documentaries." Film Comment (March/April 2018)
"Jacques Tati." Director's Club #124 (February 27, 2017)
Jilanu, Zaid. "The Hilarious, Terrifying, British Death of Stalin Shows How American Comedy's Gone Wrong." The Intercept (March 17, 2018)
Jones, Kent. "Labor of Love: Dan Talbot followed his passion for cinema against the tide of a changing industry." Film Comment (March/April 2018)
Lane, Anthony. "The Death of Stalin Dares to Make Evil Funny." The New Yorker (March 19, 2018) ["In Armando Iannucci’s outrageous comedy about the dead tyrant’s underlings, every gag is girded with fear."]
Saturday, March 17, 2018
Dialogic Cinephilia - March 17, 2018
This day, for me, has never been about St. Patrick's Day, instead it has always been a day of Grace for me. Today is the birthday of my beloved grandmother Grace - she would have been 101 years old today. I wish I could talk to her about all the things I have experienced and learned since she left this world. From the earliest age she treated me intellectually like an adult and she was a huge influence on my critical thinking. She was very religious when I knew her (supposedly she was quite wild when she was younger;), but in the process of getting me to read the bible (7 times, annually, front-to-back) she insisted that I write in the margins with different colors each read-through, commenting, reflecting and questioning on what was written. Each time we would read together she would ask me "what do you think about that" and she never avoided my pointed questions about the unethical aspects of the religion and/or the inconsistencies I noticed (I was particularly upset about the justification of murder, genocide, racism, misogyny, homophobia, elitism, etc... as well as, the problematic language across certain editions that I noticed because I was encouraged to use biblical dictionaries and concordances ). Unfortunately she was a Southern Baptist (a branch which didn't allow women to be religious leaders), because she was much more honest and impressive than the patriarchal preachers who evaded my questioning/critiques of biblical 'wisdom' (and eventually led to my disillusionment and departure). So on this day I will raise a toast to my Grandmother Grace who continues to live on inside my heart and mind.
Brooks, Xan. "Joaquin Phoenix: ‘There was a period when I wanted out. I wanted my life back.’" The Guardian (March 8, 2018) ["The actor is back with another no-holds-barred performance in his new movie, You Were Never Really Here. He talks about his unorthodox childhood, playing Jesus – and the toll Hollywood’s ‘rampant’ abuse culture takes on everybody."]
Bursztynski, Maurice, Tim Merrill and Bernard Stickwell. "Ishtar." See Hear #24 (January 17, 2016) ["1987’s Ishtar starring Dustin Hoffman and Warren Beatty as Chuck Clarke and Lyle Rogers, two awful songwriters and lounge singers who get sent to play gigs at a hotel in Ishtar, but get caught up in American / Middle Eastern politics. Strangely familiar? The film was a financial failure with rumours of creative conflict between the director, comedian Elaine May (of the brilliant May and Nichols duo) and Beatty & Hoffman. It has long been derided by the critics and many others as one of the worst films ever made. With bravery and fortitude, the See Hear Crew went in to find out if the film was as bad as reports had made it out. We are pleased to report that there was disagreement among the crew as to the film’s merits – conflict makes a film more interesting, and so it does for members of a podcast. Forget Siskel and Ebert or Stratton and Pomeranz. We give you the infamous Ishtar Disagreement of Merrill, Stickwell and Bursztynski."]
Carver, Ron, Paul Cox and Susan Schnall. "The GI Resistance Continues: Vietnam Vets Return to My Lai, Where U.S. Slaughtered 500 Civilians." Democracy Now (March 16, 2018) ["As a group of Vietnam War veterans and peace activists travel back to Vietnam to mark the 50th anniversary of the My Lai massacre, Amy Goodman and Juan González speak with three members of the delegation: Vietnam veteran Paul Cox, who later co-founded the Veterans for Peace chapter in San Francisco; Susan Schnall, former Navy nurse who was court-martialed for opposing the Vietnam War; and longtime activist Ron Carver, who has organized an exhibit honoring the GI antiwar movement at the War Remnants Museum in Ho Chi Minh City."]
Goodman, Amy. " 50 Years After My Lai Massacre in Vietnam, Revisiting the Slaughter the U.S. Military Tried to Hide." Democracy Now (March 16, 2018) ["Fifty years ago, on March 16, 1968, U.S. soldiers attacked the Vietnamese village of My Lai. Even though the soldiers met no resistance, they slaughtered more than 500 Vietnamese women, children and old men over the next four hours, in what became known as the My Lai massacre. After the massacre, the U.S. military attempted to cover up what happened. But in 1969 a young reporter named Seymour Hersh would reveal a 26-year-old soldier named William Calley was being investigated for killing 109 Vietnamese civilians. Today, memorials have been held in My Lai to mark the 50th anniversary of this horrific attack."]
Gross, Allie. "Charterize, Privatize, Christianize: The DeVos-Backed Policies That 'Gutted' Michigan Public Schools." Democracy Now (March 13, 2018) ["Education Secretary Betsy DeVos is facing new criticism after she struggled in a recent “60 Minutes” interview to explain why schools in her home state of Michigan are faring poorly under the policies she has championed. DeVos is a billionaire Republican activist and the sister of Blackwater founder Erik Prince. She once served as chair of the American Federation for Children in Michigan, where she promoted school choice and worked to expand the state’s use of private charter schools. Many educators say the results of DeVos’s policies in Michigan have been disastrous. For more, we speak with Allie Gross, a reporter with the Detroit Free Press. She covered education in Michigan as a freelance reporter and was a Teach for America teacher in a Detroit charter school."]
James, Andrew, et al. "Danny Boyle." The Director's Club #123 (January 2017)
Kaufman, Sophie Monks. "Joaquin Phoenix: ‘I always look to work with people that push me.'" Little White Lies (March 7, 2018)
Massa, Will. "Into the Stunning Visual World of Lynne Ramsey." BFI (March 7, 2018) ["Lynne Ramsay’s You Were Never Really Here is a potent thriller that further develops the director’s preoccupations with guilt, loss of innocence and memory. We follow the breadcrumb trail back to the start of her career and explore the origins of this year’s most intriguing character study."]
Taubin, Amy. "Always on the Verge: Diversity and representation aren’t just buzzwords at Sundance—they’ve long been a way of life." Film Comment (March/April 2018)
---. "Mother Earth." Film Comment (March/April 2018) ["An unclassifiable, unflinching eco-mystery, Agnieszka Holland’s Spoor shows off the pioneering Pole’s stylistic verve—and nerves of steel"]
Brooks, Xan. "Joaquin Phoenix: ‘There was a period when I wanted out. I wanted my life back.’" The Guardian (March 8, 2018) ["The actor is back with another no-holds-barred performance in his new movie, You Were Never Really Here. He talks about his unorthodox childhood, playing Jesus – and the toll Hollywood’s ‘rampant’ abuse culture takes on everybody."]
Bursztynski, Maurice, Tim Merrill and Bernard Stickwell. "Ishtar." See Hear #24 (January 17, 2016) ["1987’s Ishtar starring Dustin Hoffman and Warren Beatty as Chuck Clarke and Lyle Rogers, two awful songwriters and lounge singers who get sent to play gigs at a hotel in Ishtar, but get caught up in American / Middle Eastern politics. Strangely familiar? The film was a financial failure with rumours of creative conflict between the director, comedian Elaine May (of the brilliant May and Nichols duo) and Beatty & Hoffman. It has long been derided by the critics and many others as one of the worst films ever made. With bravery and fortitude, the See Hear Crew went in to find out if the film was as bad as reports had made it out. We are pleased to report that there was disagreement among the crew as to the film’s merits – conflict makes a film more interesting, and so it does for members of a podcast. Forget Siskel and Ebert or Stratton and Pomeranz. We give you the infamous Ishtar Disagreement of Merrill, Stickwell and Bursztynski."]
Carver, Ron, Paul Cox and Susan Schnall. "The GI Resistance Continues: Vietnam Vets Return to My Lai, Where U.S. Slaughtered 500 Civilians." Democracy Now (March 16, 2018) ["As a group of Vietnam War veterans and peace activists travel back to Vietnam to mark the 50th anniversary of the My Lai massacre, Amy Goodman and Juan González speak with three members of the delegation: Vietnam veteran Paul Cox, who later co-founded the Veterans for Peace chapter in San Francisco; Susan Schnall, former Navy nurse who was court-martialed for opposing the Vietnam War; and longtime activist Ron Carver, who has organized an exhibit honoring the GI antiwar movement at the War Remnants Museum in Ho Chi Minh City."]
Goodman, Amy. " 50 Years After My Lai Massacre in Vietnam, Revisiting the Slaughter the U.S. Military Tried to Hide." Democracy Now (March 16, 2018) ["Fifty years ago, on March 16, 1968, U.S. soldiers attacked the Vietnamese village of My Lai. Even though the soldiers met no resistance, they slaughtered more than 500 Vietnamese women, children and old men over the next four hours, in what became known as the My Lai massacre. After the massacre, the U.S. military attempted to cover up what happened. But in 1969 a young reporter named Seymour Hersh would reveal a 26-year-old soldier named William Calley was being investigated for killing 109 Vietnamese civilians. Today, memorials have been held in My Lai to mark the 50th anniversary of this horrific attack."]
Gross, Allie. "Charterize, Privatize, Christianize: The DeVos-Backed Policies That 'Gutted' Michigan Public Schools." Democracy Now (March 13, 2018) ["Education Secretary Betsy DeVos is facing new criticism after she struggled in a recent “60 Minutes” interview to explain why schools in her home state of Michigan are faring poorly under the policies she has championed. DeVos is a billionaire Republican activist and the sister of Blackwater founder Erik Prince. She once served as chair of the American Federation for Children in Michigan, where she promoted school choice and worked to expand the state’s use of private charter schools. Many educators say the results of DeVos’s policies in Michigan have been disastrous. For more, we speak with Allie Gross, a reporter with the Detroit Free Press. She covered education in Michigan as a freelance reporter and was a Teach for America teacher in a Detroit charter school."]
Kaufman, Sophie Monks. "Joaquin Phoenix: ‘I always look to work with people that push me.'" Little White Lies (March 7, 2018)
Massa, Will. "Into the Stunning Visual World of Lynne Ramsey." BFI (March 7, 2018) ["Lynne Ramsay’s You Were Never Really Here is a potent thriller that further develops the director’s preoccupations with guilt, loss of innocence and memory. We follow the breadcrumb trail back to the start of her career and explore the origins of this year’s most intriguing character study."]
Taubin, Amy. "Always on the Verge: Diversity and representation aren’t just buzzwords at Sundance—they’ve long been a way of life." Film Comment (March/April 2018)
---. "Mother Earth." Film Comment (March/April 2018) ["An unclassifiable, unflinching eco-mystery, Agnieszka Holland’s Spoor shows off the pioneering Pole’s stylistic verve—and nerves of steel"]
Friday, March 16, 2018
Dialogic Cinephilia - March 16, 2018
Bursztynski, Maurice, Tim Merrill and Bernard Stickwell. "Space is the Place." See Hear #22 (November 20, 2015) ["How does music affect you? Are you one of those people who says that great music can transport you to another place? Jazz musician Sun Ra felt the same thing, but he meant it a little more literally than most. In this episode of the podcast, Tim, Bernie and Maurice discuss important issues such as isotope teleportation, transmolecuralisation, and teleporting people from Earth to Saturn via music. Well….they actually discuss the film released in 1974 written by and starring Sun Ra called “Space Is The Place”. Ra was certainly out there with his beliefs that he was born on Saturn and descended from the Egyptian sun god, Ra. On the other hand, he was extremely articulate, very well read and philosophically rational Oh….and he was a true jazz pioneer. The film is a mix of the power of music, blaxploitation and science fiction as Sun Ra battles the evil Overseer for the right to transport the Afro-American community from Earth to another planet when he determines the earth is doomed. He will do this via the power of music. Sounds crazy? Yep…..and yet, nope. The See Hear trio see all sorts of film, literature and music precedents for this film, and also point out who took on Sun Ra’s legacy. We hope you find it a thought provoking discussion. So, if you find earth boring, just the same old same thing, come on jump on board the good space ship See Hear for a trip to the outer recesses of the mind and the universe."]
Girish, Devika. "Out of This World." Film Comment (March/April 2018) ["Ryan Coogler’s Black Panther envisions an alternate future for a troubled genre and a troubling reality, pointing the way toward more political, playful science fiction"]
Hudson, David. "Cannes 2017: Lynne Ramsey's You Were Never Really Here." The Current (May 27, 2017)
Hudson, David. "Sundance 2018: Boots Riley's Sorry to Bother You." The Current (January 24, 2018)
Joseph, Harry, Anne Rolfes and Pamela Spees. "Critics of Bayou Bridge Pipeline in Louisiana Decry State & Company Surveillance of Protesters." Democracy Now (March 13, 2018) ["In Louisiana, newly disclosed documents reveal a state intelligence agency regularly spied on activists opposing construction of the Bayou Bridge pipeline, which would carry nearly a half-million barrels of oil per day across Louisiana’s wetlands. The documents show the Louisiana Governor’s Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness regularly drafted intelligence memos on anti-pipeline activists, including a gathering of indigenous-led water protectors who’ve set up a protest encampment along the pipeline’s route. Other newly revealed documents show close coordination between Louisiana regulators and the company building the pipeline, Energy Transfer Partners. This comes just one week after a U.S. district judge in Baton Rouge ordered a temporary injunction against construction of the Bayou Bridge pipeline in order to “prevent further irreparable harm” to the region’s delicate ecosystems, while court challenges proceed. For more, we speak with Pastor Harry Joseph of the Mount Triumph Baptist Church. We also speak with Pamela Spees of the Center for Constitutional Rights and Anne Rolfes, founding director of the Louisiana Bucket Brigade."]
Romney, Jonathan. "Interview with Lynne Ramsey." Film Comment (March 5, 2018)
Stone, Oliver. "Movies, Politics and History." Conversations with History (April 21, 2016) ["Conversations host Harry Kreisler welcomes filmmaker Oliver Stone for a discussion of the trajectory of his career as director, screenwriter, and producer. Stone traces formative experiences, talks about different aspects of the filmmaking process including working with actors, writing screenplays, directing and post production. He focuses on the themes that have drawn him, the distinction of being a dramatist who works with historical materials, and his recent works including Alexander and the 10 part documentary on The Untold History of the United States."]
Telaroli, Gina. "You Were Never Really Here." Film Comment (March/April 2018)
Williams, Tom. "Morvern Callar and the search for something beautiful." Little White Lies (March 8, 2018)
Girish, Devika. "Out of This World." Film Comment (March/April 2018) ["Ryan Coogler’s Black Panther envisions an alternate future for a troubled genre and a troubling reality, pointing the way toward more political, playful science fiction"]
Hudson, David. "Sundance 2018: Boots Riley's Sorry to Bother You." The Current (January 24, 2018)
Joseph, Harry, Anne Rolfes and Pamela Spees. "Critics of Bayou Bridge Pipeline in Louisiana Decry State & Company Surveillance of Protesters." Democracy Now (March 13, 2018) ["In Louisiana, newly disclosed documents reveal a state intelligence agency regularly spied on activists opposing construction of the Bayou Bridge pipeline, which would carry nearly a half-million barrels of oil per day across Louisiana’s wetlands. The documents show the Louisiana Governor’s Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness regularly drafted intelligence memos on anti-pipeline activists, including a gathering of indigenous-led water protectors who’ve set up a protest encampment along the pipeline’s route. Other newly revealed documents show close coordination between Louisiana regulators and the company building the pipeline, Energy Transfer Partners. This comes just one week after a U.S. district judge in Baton Rouge ordered a temporary injunction against construction of the Bayou Bridge pipeline in order to “prevent further irreparable harm” to the region’s delicate ecosystems, while court challenges proceed. For more, we speak with Pastor Harry Joseph of the Mount Triumph Baptist Church. We also speak with Pamela Spees of the Center for Constitutional Rights and Anne Rolfes, founding director of the Louisiana Bucket Brigade."]
Romney, Jonathan. "Interview with Lynne Ramsey." Film Comment (March 5, 2018)
Stone, Oliver. "Movies, Politics and History." Conversations with History (April 21, 2016) ["Conversations host Harry Kreisler welcomes filmmaker Oliver Stone for a discussion of the trajectory of his career as director, screenwriter, and producer. Stone traces formative experiences, talks about different aspects of the filmmaking process including working with actors, writing screenplays, directing and post production. He focuses on the themes that have drawn him, the distinction of being a dramatist who works with historical materials, and his recent works including Alexander and the 10 part documentary on The Untold History of the United States."]
Telaroli, Gina. "You Were Never Really Here." Film Comment (March/April 2018)
Williams, Tom. "Morvern Callar and the search for something beautiful." Little White Lies (March 8, 2018)
Tuesday, March 13, 2018
Dialogic Cinephilia - March 13, 2018
Aronoff, Kate. "The Young Karl Marx: A Film Whose Time Has Come." The Intercept (March 13, 2018)
Bursztynski, Maurice, Tim Merrill and Bernard Stickwell. "All Night Long and Edgeplay: A Film About The Runaways." See Hear #20 (September 20, 2015) ["First up, we discuss Cameron Towler’s request of a film from 1962. “All Night Long” is director Basil Dearden’s take on Shakespeare’s “Othello” as transplanted to (then)modern day England. All appears to be well as Aurelius Rex and Delia Lane celebrate their first wedding anniversary with their jazz musician friends. He’s a pianist and bandleader and she’s a retired singer. Evil drummer (I didn’t know there was such a thing) Johnny Cousin plots to put a wedge between them to secure Delia for his new band. Featuring music performed by the likes of John Dankworth, Charles Mingus and Dave Brubeck, this film takes a creative spin on the bard’s tragedy. Next, we discuss Brie Edwards’ request of 2004’s documentary “Edgeplay: A Film About The Runaways”. The history of rock is littered with bands who have been dealt with poorly by management and labels. What makes The Runaways’ tale even sadder is they were all teenagers in the care of Kim Fowley, a sleazy manager who, admittedly got them success, but at a great cost emotionally. The documentary is directed by their second bassist Vicky Tischler-Blue. We discuss her approach to the actual making of the film, as well as the events themselves."]
Bursztynski, Maurice, et al. "All That Jazz." See Hear #19 (July 20, 2015)
["Bob Fosse’s incredible autobiographical 1979 film, All That Jazz. The film features Roy Scheider in a career best performance (go on – argue against that notion if you can) as Fosse’s proxy, Joe Gideon. Joe is a Broadway director and choreographer, and a film director. He is all consumingly devoted to his art, but is a poor husband, father, and companion. He’s not a great male figure, yet he’s not shown as a shallow character without dimension. We have a fascinating conversation about devotion to art over devotion to domesticity, manipulation, how the entertainment business spits out its own, death, the truth, and the Mile High Club."]
Liu, Rebecca. "Of River Gods and Women: Guillermo Del Toro's The Shape of Water." Another Gaze (February 23, 2018)
Miéville, China. "‘One thinge that ouerthroweth all that were graunted before’: On Being Presidential." Salvage (January 30, 2018)
Peck, Raoul. "Part 1: The Young Karl Marx Director Raoul Peck Responds to NRA Chief Calling Gun Control Activists Communists." Democracy Now (February 23, 2018) ["World-famous filmmaker Raoul Peck is releasing a film today in Los Angeles and New York on the life and times of Karl Marx. It’s called “The Young Karl Marx.” The film’s release comes as the head of the National Rifle Association, Wayne LaPierre, broke his silence after last week’s Florida school shooting that left 17 dead, attacking gun control advocates as communists in an address to the Conservative Political Action Conference, or CPAC. We speak with acclaimed Haitian filmmaker and political activist Raoul Peck about his new film and the role of Marxism in organizing for gun reform."]
---. "Part 2: Filmmaker Raoul Peck on The Young Karl Marx, James Baldwin, U.S. Interventions Abroad & More." Democracy Now (February 27, 2018) ["Extended discussion with world-famous filmmaker Raoul Peck about his new film, “The Young Karl Marx,” his Oscar-nominated film about James Baldwin, “I Am Not Your Negro,” and much more."]
Zollman, Florian. "Fake News by Design." Monthly Review (March 7, 2018) ["Mainstream news media reporting and the manufacture of bloodbaths in Libya and Syria"]
Monday, March 12, 2018
Dialogic Cinephilia on Podcasts/Radio
Benton, Michael and Patrick McNeese. "Media/Cinema/Writing." Voicebox (January 2017)
Benton, Michael, Maurice Bursztynski, Tim Merrill and Bernard Stickwell. "Desperate Man Blues and Vinyl." See Hear #49 (February 20, 2018)
Benton, Michael, Maurice Bursztynski, Tim Merrill and Bernard Stickwell. "Desperate Man Blues and Vinyl." See Hear #49 (February 20, 2018)
Thursday, March 8, 2018
Dialogic Cinephilia - March 8, 2018
As a child I was imprinted upon by the grace and power of two beautiful, strong, independent women - my Mom Yvonne and my grandmother Grace. In celebration of these two important women in my life I want to wish all the women in my life and throughout the world a Happy International Women's Day.
Bachner, Michael. "In new film, Jewish director challenges Israeli version of 1976 Entebbe rescue." The Times of Israel (February 20, 2018)
Benton, Michael, et al. "Desperate Man Blues and Vinyl." See Hear (February 20, 2018) ["There are two sides to every story. We at See Hear HQ decide to look at both sides of the contentious question as to whether record collectors (and by extension, collectors of any physical item) are archivists or hoarders. Tim, Bernard and Maurice are joined by Professor Michael Benton from Bluegrass Community College in Lexington, Kentucky for episode 49 of See Hear to talk about two films that explore record collection from two very different angles. Australian film maker Edward Gillan’s documentary from 2003, “Desperate Man Blues” is a snapshot of the record collecting activities of Joe Bussard from Maryland. Bussard has been collecting old country, blues and jazz 78s from the 1920s through to the 1950s. At the time of filming, he had anything from 15000 to 20000 records. His knowledge of what we currently call Americana is unsurpassed. He has a genuine joy in listening to and sharing the music he has spent a lifetime collecting. On the other side of the coin, Toronto documentarian Alan Zweig’s first feature length film, Vinyl puts himself and many other record collectors under the spotlight to ask what prompts them to “accumulate” records. Zweig’s contention is that the music takes a backseat to the gathering of records – all for the sake of the hunt. He tells many of his interview subjects that they (including himself) cannot form meaningful relationships with others, and so record collecting manifests itself as a substitute for human interaction. Far from flattering. Is this film just cheap therapy for Zweig or is he just playing devil’s advocate to get discussion going? The crew discuss the different approach taken to the subject matter between the films, as well as how close to home these films (Vinyl in particular) may have hit. You may collect DVDs, model aeroplanes, matchboxes…….the ideals of historical preservation vs accumulation for its own sake still hold. Should we judge?"]
"Children of Men: Alfonso Cuarón’s Bleak but Genius Vision of the Past, Present and the Future." Cinephilia & Beyond (ND)
Gettys, Travis. "Colorado Voters May Have the Chance to Legalize Psychedelic Mushrooms." Raw Story (March 8, 2018)
Hudson, David. "Ava DuVernay's A Wrinkle in Time." The Current (March 7, 2018)
McGill, Hannah. "Girl friends on film: the rare case of lifelike female friendships on the big screen." Sight & Sound (March 5, 2018)
McKibben, Sophie and Anjali Tsui. "Child Marriage in America." The Frontline Dispatch #1 (September 14, 2017) ["In the summer after 9th grade, 14-year-old Heather discovered she was pregnant. Her boyfriend Aaron was 24. At the time, marriage seemed like it could be a solution to their problems — and maybe a way to keep Aaron out of jail. ... reporter Anjali Tsui, an Abrams Journalism Fellow through the Frontline/Columbia Journalism School fellowship program, and producer Sophie McKibben go inside a battle playing out over child marriage in America."]
Bande annonce de la nuit Russ Meyer from La Cinémathèque française on Vimeo.
Bachner, Michael. "In new film, Jewish director challenges Israeli version of 1976 Entebbe rescue." The Times of Israel (February 20, 2018)
Benton, Michael, et al. "Desperate Man Blues and Vinyl." See Hear (February 20, 2018) ["There are two sides to every story. We at See Hear HQ decide to look at both sides of the contentious question as to whether record collectors (and by extension, collectors of any physical item) are archivists or hoarders. Tim, Bernard and Maurice are joined by Professor Michael Benton from Bluegrass Community College in Lexington, Kentucky for episode 49 of See Hear to talk about two films that explore record collection from two very different angles. Australian film maker Edward Gillan’s documentary from 2003, “Desperate Man Blues” is a snapshot of the record collecting activities of Joe Bussard from Maryland. Bussard has been collecting old country, blues and jazz 78s from the 1920s through to the 1950s. At the time of filming, he had anything from 15000 to 20000 records. His knowledge of what we currently call Americana is unsurpassed. He has a genuine joy in listening to and sharing the music he has spent a lifetime collecting. On the other side of the coin, Toronto documentarian Alan Zweig’s first feature length film, Vinyl puts himself and many other record collectors under the spotlight to ask what prompts them to “accumulate” records. Zweig’s contention is that the music takes a backseat to the gathering of records – all for the sake of the hunt. He tells many of his interview subjects that they (including himself) cannot form meaningful relationships with others, and so record collecting manifests itself as a substitute for human interaction. Far from flattering. Is this film just cheap therapy for Zweig or is he just playing devil’s advocate to get discussion going? The crew discuss the different approach taken to the subject matter between the films, as well as how close to home these films (Vinyl in particular) may have hit. You may collect DVDs, model aeroplanes, matchboxes…….the ideals of historical preservation vs accumulation for its own sake still hold. Should we judge?"]
"Children of Men: Alfonso Cuarón’s Bleak but Genius Vision of the Past, Present and the Future." Cinephilia & Beyond (ND)
Gettys, Travis. "Colorado Voters May Have the Chance to Legalize Psychedelic Mushrooms." Raw Story (March 8, 2018)
Hudson, David. "Ava DuVernay's A Wrinkle in Time." The Current (March 7, 2018)
McGill, Hannah. "Girl friends on film: the rare case of lifelike female friendships on the big screen." Sight & Sound (March 5, 2018)
McKibben, Sophie and Anjali Tsui. "Child Marriage in America." The Frontline Dispatch #1 (September 14, 2017) ["In the summer after 9th grade, 14-year-old Heather discovered she was pregnant. Her boyfriend Aaron was 24. At the time, marriage seemed like it could be a solution to their problems — and maybe a way to keep Aaron out of jail. ... reporter Anjali Tsui, an Abrams Journalism Fellow through the Frontline/Columbia Journalism School fellowship program, and producer Sophie McKibben go inside a battle playing out over child marriage in America."]
Tuesday, March 6, 2018
Dialogic Cinephilia - March 6, 2018
Boone, Alastair. "What Airbnb Did to New York City." City Lab (March 5, 2018)
Caught in the Net: The Early Internet in the Paranoid Imagination." Harvard Film Archive (March 2018)
Di Rosso, Jason. "Nocturama." The Final Cut (September 22, 2017)
Di Rosso, Jason, et al. "Cinema Under the Digital Influence." The Final Cut (September 30, 2017)
Drugs Dialogic Cinephilia (Ongoing Archive)
Ehrenreich, Barbara. "Body Work: The Curiously Self-Punishing Rites of Fitness Culture." The Baffler #38 ["An excerpt from the book Natural Causes: An Epidemic of Wellness, the Certainty of Dying, and Killing Ourselves to Live Longer © 2018 by Barbara Ehrenreich, forthcoming from Twelve on April 10, 2018."]
Laverty, Lord Christopher. "Dual Analysis: The Big Lebowski." Clothes on Film (June 1, 2010)
Loofbourow, Lili. "The Male Glance: How We Fail to Take Women's Stories Seriously." The Guardian (March 6, 2018) ["Male art is epic, universal, and profoundly meaningful. Women’s creations are domestic, emotional and trivial. How did we learn to misread stories so badly?"]
Scott, James C. Two Cheers for Anarchism: Six Easy Pieces on Autonomy, Dignity, and Meaningful Work and Play. Princeton University Press, 2012.
Caught in the Net: The Early Internet in the Paranoid Imagination." Harvard Film Archive (March 2018)
Di Rosso, Jason. "Nocturama." The Final Cut (September 22, 2017)
Di Rosso, Jason, et al. "Cinema Under the Digital Influence." The Final Cut (September 30, 2017)
Drugs Dialogic Cinephilia (Ongoing Archive)
Ehrenreich, Barbara. "Body Work: The Curiously Self-Punishing Rites of Fitness Culture." The Baffler #38 ["An excerpt from the book Natural Causes: An Epidemic of Wellness, the Certainty of Dying, and Killing Ourselves to Live Longer © 2018 by Barbara Ehrenreich, forthcoming from Twelve on April 10, 2018."]
Laverty, Lord Christopher. "Dual Analysis: The Big Lebowski." Clothes on Film (June 1, 2010)
Loofbourow, Lili. "The Male Glance: How We Fail to Take Women's Stories Seriously." The Guardian (March 6, 2018) ["Male art is epic, universal, and profoundly meaningful. Women’s creations are domestic, emotional and trivial. How did we learn to misread stories so badly?"]
Scott, James C. Two Cheers for Anarchism: Six Easy Pieces on Autonomy, Dignity, and Meaningful Work and Play. Princeton University Press, 2012.
Monday, March 5, 2018
Dialogic Cinephilia - March 5, 2018
I remember in the mid -70s as a California, middle school, straight A honor's student watching my beloved teachers being humiliated daily on the picket lines in their demands for a decent wage and benefits during a nearly year long strike. The schools brought anyone with a BA in to teach us and we quickly recognized their incompetence. As students we revolted against those scabs (in hindsight I probably viewed them with the contempt a French resistance fighter did for the Vichy police doing the social control for their NAZI masters). We learned disrespect for illegitimate authority, contempt for bureaucratic/administrative incompetence (they were the worst substitutes) and a new sympathy for those that were authentic in their struggle for a better life for all (in particular as we ditched our classes to walk the picket line with our teachers). Those teachers were never the same after the strike (my favorite teacher returned a broken man and soon retired) and neither were their students (I ended up a 10th grade dropout, ditching to head to the beach became a habit by then).
What do we care about in this society - do we even give a damn about the future. The young will not forget how you treat/disrespect/abuse their respected/beloved mentors and teachers. Some of you may think this doesn't matter because you send your kids to private schools - you are naive, as you and your kids live with us
Solidarity! Support our teachers!
Elk, Mike and Jay O'Neal. "'People Have Just Had Enough': West Virginia Teachers Continue Historic Strike into Eighth Day." Democracy Now (March 5, 2018) ["Schools across West Virginia are closed for an eighth day, as more than 20,000 teachers and 13,000 school staffers remain on strike demanding higher wages and better healthcare. The strike, which began on February 22, has shut down every public school in the state. Teachers are demanding a 5 percent raise and a cap on spiraling healthcare costs. For more, we speak with Jay O’Neal, a middle school teacher and a union activist in Charleston, West Virginia. And we speak with Mike Elk, senior labor reporter at Payday Report. His most recent piece is titled “West Virginia Teachers’ Strike Fever Starting to Spread to Other States.”"]
---. "From Coal Miners to Teachers: West Virginia Continues to Lead Radical Labor Struggle in the U.S." Democracy Now (May 5, 2018) ["For decades, West Virginia has been at the forefront of labor activism in the United States. As the state’s teachers continue their historic strike, which has shut down every single West Virginia school, we look at the history of the labor activism in the Mountain State. We speak with Jay O’Neal, a middle school teacher and a union activist in Charleston, West Virginia. And we speak with Mike Elk, senior labor reporter at Payday Report. His most recent piece is titled 'West Virginia Teachers’ Strike Fever Starting to Spread to Other States.'"]
---. "From Coal Miners to Teachers: West Virginia Continues to Lead Radical Labor Struggle in the U.S." Democracy Now (May 5, 2018) ["For decades, West Virginia has been at the forefront of labor activism in the United States. As the state’s teachers continue their historic strike, which has shut down every single West Virginia school, we look at the history of the labor activism in the Mountain State. We speak with Jay O’Neal, a middle school teacher and a union activist in Charleston, West Virginia. And we speak with Mike Elk, senior labor reporter at Payday Report. His most recent piece is titled 'West Virginia Teachers’ Strike Fever Starting to Spread to Other States.'"]
Gibbons, Jessica. "With Just $1, You Can Help Support The #DirectedbyWomen Initiative." Agnes Films (March 4, 2018)
Gopal, Priya. "U.K. University Workers Enter Week 3 of Strike Against Pension Cuts & 'Marketization' of Higher Ed." Democracy Now (March 5, 2018) ["In Britain, tens of thousands of lecturers, librarians, researchers and other university workers are on strike to protest attacks on their pensions, as well as soaring school fees for students. For more, we speak with Priya Gopal, a university lecturer at the Faculty of English at Cambridge who is participating in the academic strike. She is a member of the the University and College Union."]
Mohmand, Rohan. "The Counselor: Requires a Method of Viewing." Art Hits Hard (March 5, 2018)
Mohmand, Rohan. "The Counselor: Requires a Method of Viewing." Art Hits Hard (March 5, 2018)
Sunday, March 4, 2018
Dialogic Cinephilia - March 4, 2018
Bursztynski, Maurice, et al. "You're Gonna Miss Me: The Roky Erickson Story." See Hear #16 (April 27, 2015) ["James Curley requested we discuss the 2005 released documentary “You’re Gonna Miss Me: The Roky Erickson Story”. Roky was most famously the amazing lead singer for The 13thFloor Elevators. He spent time in and out of institutions with dangerous people. He suffered from paranoid schizophrenia, but was treated poorly at the hands of the doctors in the Austin State Hospital and Rusk Institution receiving EST for a misdiagnosed condition. The film is a fly on the wall account of his life, and documents the custody battle between his brother Sumner and their mother to look after him following his departure from the hospitals. He is definitely a damaged soul, but his family is full of delicate individuals. In the end, though, the film contains hope and is not as bleak in the end as it could have been. We had a really interesting discussion about mental health, musical brilliance, and fragility."]
Devens, Arik and Allen Pike. "Catch Me If You Can." Cinema Gadfly (November 29, 2015)
Evans, Gavin. "The Unwelcome Revival of 'Race Science': Its defenders claim to be standing up for uncomfortable truths, but race science is still as bogus as ever." The Guardian (March 2, 2018)
Fox, Neil and Dario Linares. "(Reposting) Ep. 1 Repo Man." The Cinematologists (September 16, 2017) ["In honour of the passing of the great Harry Dean Stanton we are reposting our first ever Cinematologists episode which focused on Alex Cox' 1984 cult classic Repo Man."]
Hudson, David. "Get Out Scores Spirit Awards." Current (March 3, 2018)
Koresky, Michael, Violet Lucca and Nicolas Rapold. "The Best of 2017." The Film Comment Podcast (December 12, 2017)
"The Stop the War FILM Coalition: 10 Anti-War Movies Released in the Last 12 Months." Dirty Movies (January 30, 2018)
Subissati, Andrea and Alexandra West. "Come As You Are: Let the Right One In (2008)." Faculty of Horror #56 (December 20, 2017)
---. "Strange and Unusual: Beetlejuice (1988)." Faculty of Horror #55 (November 27, 2017) ["Ghosts, possession, autonomous sculptures and that’s just scratching the surface of Tim Burton’s genre-bending cult classic, Beetlejuice. In this episode, Andrea and Alex manage to avoid saying his name three times while diving into the aesthetics, capitalist virtues and bureaucracy of the afterlife that surrounds everyone’s favourite bio-exorcist."]
Saturday, March 3, 2018
Dialogic Cinephilia - March 3, 2018
Benton, Michael. "Recommended Films of 1969." Letterboxd (Ongoing Archive)
Gordon-Reed, Annette. "Thomas Jefferson, Sally Hemings, and the Burden of Slavery." Conversations with History (September 28, 2016) ["Conversations host Harry Kreisler welcomes Harvard Professor Annette Gordon-Reed for a discussion of her work as a lawyer/historian focusing on the contradictions of the life of Thomas Jefferson. Recalling her intellectual odyssey. Professor Gordon-Reed elucidates her contribution to Jeffersonian scholarship including her most recent book “The Most Blessed of Patriarchs”: Thomas Jefferson and the Empire of Imagination(written with Peter S. Onuf). Topics covered in the conversation include how her training as a lawyer empowered her to overturn the conventional historical view of the relationship between Jefferson and Sally Hemings. Professor Gordon-Reed highlights the structural intellectual racism at the heart of Jeffersonian historiography which ignored the factual evidence which pointed to Jefferson as the father of Sally Heming’s children. In examining the evolution of Jefferson’s ideas on slavery, Professor Gordon-Reed emphasizes how Jefferson’s theory of slavery evolved as he adapted to the reality of American social and political life. She concludes with an the implications of her work for understanding the present turmoil over black/ white relations in the U.S. today."]
Hacker, Jacob S. and Paul Pierson. "The Powell Memo: A Call to Arms for Corporations." Moyers & Company (September 14, 2012) ["In this excerpt from Winner-Take-All Politics: How Washington Made the Rich Richer — and Turned Its Back on the Middle Class, authors Jacob S. Hacker and Paul Pierson explain the significance of the Powell Memorandum, a call-to-arms for American corporations written by Virginia lawyer (and future U.S. Supreme Court justice) Lewis Powell to a neighbor working with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce."]
Hirthler, Jason. "Colonizing the Western Mind." Counterpunch (March 2, 2018)
Jauch, Herbert. "How The IMF-World Bank and Structural Adjustment Program (SAP) Destroyed Africa." News Rescue (May 26, 2009)
Meek, Esther. "On Knowledge, Philosophy and Wisdom." Face 2 Face (April 11, 2016) ["Esther talks about her love for knowledge, philosophy and wisdom, defective approaches to knowing, how "it's all connected" and why she is concerned about others as a philosopher."]
Paxton, Robert O. "Melville's French Resistance." The Daily (January 11, 2011)
Sperling, Nicole. "Black Panther Cinematographer Rachel Morrison Shoots and Scores." Vanity Fair (February 16, 2018) ["The first woman nominated for a cinematography Oscar takes on Mudbound, Black Panther, and the Hollywood establishment."]
Gordon-Reed, Annette. "Thomas Jefferson, Sally Hemings, and the Burden of Slavery." Conversations with History (September 28, 2016) ["Conversations host Harry Kreisler welcomes Harvard Professor Annette Gordon-Reed for a discussion of her work as a lawyer/historian focusing on the contradictions of the life of Thomas Jefferson. Recalling her intellectual odyssey. Professor Gordon-Reed elucidates her contribution to Jeffersonian scholarship including her most recent book “The Most Blessed of Patriarchs”: Thomas Jefferson and the Empire of Imagination(written with Peter S. Onuf). Topics covered in the conversation include how her training as a lawyer empowered her to overturn the conventional historical view of the relationship between Jefferson and Sally Hemings. Professor Gordon-Reed highlights the structural intellectual racism at the heart of Jeffersonian historiography which ignored the factual evidence which pointed to Jefferson as the father of Sally Heming’s children. In examining the evolution of Jefferson’s ideas on slavery, Professor Gordon-Reed emphasizes how Jefferson’s theory of slavery evolved as he adapted to the reality of American social and political life. She concludes with an the implications of her work for understanding the present turmoil over black/ white relations in the U.S. today."]
Hacker, Jacob S. and Paul Pierson. "The Powell Memo: A Call to Arms for Corporations." Moyers & Company (September 14, 2012) ["In this excerpt from Winner-Take-All Politics: How Washington Made the Rich Richer — and Turned Its Back on the Middle Class, authors Jacob S. Hacker and Paul Pierson explain the significance of the Powell Memorandum, a call-to-arms for American corporations written by Virginia lawyer (and future U.S. Supreme Court justice) Lewis Powell to a neighbor working with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce."]
Hirthler, Jason. "Colonizing the Western Mind." Counterpunch (March 2, 2018)
Jauch, Herbert. "How The IMF-World Bank and Structural Adjustment Program (SAP) Destroyed Africa." News Rescue (May 26, 2009)
Meek, Esther. "On Knowledge, Philosophy and Wisdom." Face 2 Face (April 11, 2016) ["Esther talks about her love for knowledge, philosophy and wisdom, defective approaches to knowing, how "it's all connected" and why she is concerned about others as a philosopher."]
Paxton, Robert O. "Melville's French Resistance." The Daily (January 11, 2011)
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