“MLK/FBI” and “Her Socialist Smile” Desanitize Two Radical Icons
Eileen G’Sell compares two documentaries about Martin Luther King, Jr. and Helen Keller, both of whom had radical politics that have been whitewashed....
“MLK/FBI” and “Her Socialist Smile” Desanitize Two Radical Icons
Eileen G’Sell compares two documentaries about Martin Luther King, Jr. and Helen Keller, both of whom had radical politics that have been whitewashed....
Cultural Fronts
A well-researched and very useful study of the Soviet Union’s cultural diplomacy....
Who’s Afraid of Transgender Kids?
Michael M. Weinstein looks at Sharon Liese’s new HBO documentary, “Transhood,” which explores the lives of children living beyond the gender binary....
A Show Trial Gets Its Show
A film about the marquee trial of the 1960s counterculture fails to explain its enduring relevance....
A Man and His Persona: On “Cary Grant: A Brilliant Disguise”
A revealing biography of an iconic Hollywood star....
The Life Ironic: The Pricks of Science and Art
A Wes Anderson devotee reminds the author of his young self and the sorts of sensibilities (science- and art-related) for which others have to pay....
This Should Be a Movie: “American Utopia,” the Concert Film, and Extending a Terrific Moment
Sara Black McCulloch considers the nature of the concert film — its scope, its liveness, and its political commitments....
The Frenchman and “The Irishman”
Martin Scorsese’s 2019 film “The Irishman” matches the austere mood of Jean-Pierre Melville’s 1969 masterpiece “Army of Shadows.”...
How to Be a Girl Detective
The new film “Enola Holmes” illustrates a cultural shift in how girlhood is conceptualized and understood....
Reimagining “Rebecca”
Ben Wheatley’s new film version of Daphne du Maurier’s classic novel is grating....
Call Me By No Name: On "Rebecca"
Tania Modleski watches new Netflix's adaptation of Rebecca and tracks the puzzling misreadings and misleadings of its source material....
Betrayal: Jean Shepherd and “A Christmas Story”
Lee Vinsel on Jean Shepherd and the darker message in "A Christmas Story."...