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Showing posts from October, 2020

Kelly's heroes (1970)

Fantastic movie - funny, exciting, somewhat anti-war, dudes rock, ww2 misfits are a vietnam commentary etc - only complaint is that they play this random "burning bridges" theme song not once not twice but thrice and it's really not a great song. 

What's the Matter with Kansas? by Thomas Frank (2004)

This was an incredibly prescient book when it was written, accurately forecasting the utter cultural division the nation would face, as well as the increasing failure of the democratic party to do anything helpful about it - but 16 years later we know all of this already, and a quick essay or review on this subject will be a better use of time. 

dirty harry (1971)

this is a reactionary movie even above and beyond the normal cop movie tropes, from the way it queer-codes the villain to the overall "good strong men don't need to follow the rules" vibe - so why do I like it so much?

farewell my concubine (1993)

installment one of a mini review series about china's collective trauma throughout the 20th century:

a gorgeous, sweeping epic about artistic and queer identity set against forty years of inconceivable change, featuring one of the most harrowing scenes I've ever seen in any film -- but it really did be like that for a billion people, and understanding this shared history is integral to understanding chinese culture and politics today