To Look Upon I Am Not Your Negro Is To Look Upon The Horrors Of American Society

James Baldwin has got to be one of the most influential writers of the 20th century, a man whose perspective on the struggles of African-Americans through this century and how it relates to centuries-old oppression is revered throughout the literary world as a crowning achievement and a vital look into the psyche of the disenfranchised. Tragically, I have been unfamiliar with his pieces of writing, though the Oscar-nominated documentary I Am Not Your Negro offered up a prime opportunity for me to get more acquainted with this prolific author and the words he's weaved on racial struggles in America.

Pierrot le Fou Review

When director Jean-Luc Godard sets out to make a movie, he isn't just embarking on a quest to create a motion picture. No, he's going on a journey to fiddle around with the conventional structures of the storytelling medium his works inhabit. He's out to find new ways to convey time passages or inner thoughts and to explore groundbreaking editing techniques that are still looked as landmark achievements decades after their release. If one were carrying a desire to see his specific traits as a filmmaker in action, look no further than his 1965 effort Pierrot le Fou, a prime example of these recurring practices of his.

In The Middle Of History Being Made, There Is A Human Being Like Jackie At The Center Of It

It's important to keep in mind that, during any major historical event, the people involved in any given monumental world-changing situation are human beings, just like you and me. It's easy to forget that, but pieces of pop culture like Hamilton are excellent reminders that individuals that have obtained mythic status in our history textbooks were just as human and vulnerable as you or me. Jackie is a movie that very much keeps this in mind as it explores the psyche of one of the most famous First Ladies ever to grace the White House; Jackie Kennedy. A woman plagued by tragedy throughout so much of her life.

Jeff Nichols Small-Scale Sensibility Works Like A Charm For Loving

Loving is a departure from some of director Jeff Nichols past few movies in quite a few ways, most notably in that this one takes more cues from his 2013 film Mud rather than his other 2016 film, the incredibly underrated Midnight Special, in terms of its story scope being very much grounded in reality. That more down-to-Earth approach ties into another crucial element that differentiates Loving from past Nichols movies, this one's actually based on a true story. The tale of Richard Perry Loving (here played by Joel Edgerton) and Mildred Jeter Loving (Ruth Negga) attempting to live a life together as a couple amidst prejudice against interracial real life is an event that really transpired, which offers new storytelling challenges that Nichols handles with the level of craft we've all come to expect from him.

The Graduate Review (Classic Write-Up)

A Graduate Of Great Directing

Who doesn't worry about the future? It's such a chaotic element, as unpredictable as a hurricane, it's only natural to be worried about the possibilities that the future could bring. Now that he's graduated from college, Ben Braddock (Dustin Hoffman), is consumed by worrying about what he'll do with his life now. From the first frames of the film, this sort of internal conflict is apparent through the recurring use of close-up shots of Ben's face that emphasize his inner turmoil as well as the similarly prominent use of Art & Garfunkel's The Sound Of Silence.

Austin Powers: International Man Of Mystery Review (Classic Write-Up)

You've Got The Touch...You've Got The Austin Pooooooowweeerrr

In an interview given a few months back, Daniel Craig noted that the primary reason elements like Biofeld, Q or fun gadgets had been seen in Bond films was that Austin Powers had parodied such tropes of the James Bond features in such a well-known manner that they couldn't use them, at least for the time. I find it interesting that Skyfall managed to incorporate some of Bond's most well-known aspects once again, suggesting that Austin Powers grasp on pop culture had faded enough for 007 to fight bad guys in elaborate lairs again.

Selma Review

A King Among Men

Discussing the topic of racial inequality in America is pretty much one of the most hazardous things a person can do, right up there with swimming in nuclear waste and drinking paint. Whether the discussion takes place at a coffee shop or on the internet, you'll be lucky if the worst you encounter is someone minimizing brutal violence against African-Ameircans by noting "#alllivesmatter" It's an endlessly frustrating scenario, but it's far, far from the worst thing the tragedy of racial inequality has begat.

DC Double Dose! First Photo Of Superman From New Movie, Plus Adam West Batman Coming To Blu-Ray!!

I believe this is half of the cast for Batman V. Superman: Dawn of Justice

DC Comics has been in news overdrive this past few weeks, whether its been announcing the official title for the new Batman vs. Superman film, or unofficially announcing whose playing Aquaman. Two big things have dropped onto the internet today, one directly related to the expanding DC Cinematic Universe started by Man of Steel, the other dealing with the first ever home video release of Adam Wests Batman show!

From The Interwebs: Rocky & Bullwinkle Return...To Promote GEICO Insurnace

From The Interwebs is a feature where I highlight videos, articles and pictures from the Internet I find interesting and worthy of sharing on this blog. 

The characters that Jay Ward made in the 60's got a big boost in popularity this year when Mr. Peabody & Sherman was released to OK domestic box office and surprisingly high critical praise. I myself found what I have seen of the movie to be dull (my family and I left our theatrical screening about 40 minutes in, so I can't give an official consensus), but at least it gave the characters Jay created some publicity.