Tag: film
A Tale of Two Racisms: ‘Jud Süß’ and Stepin Fetchit
If YouTube had never existed, I probably wouldn’t have gotten the chance to see Jud Süß (1940) and the Stepin Fetchit short film Slow Poke (1932). Thankfully, I did, and I’m very grateful. I think everyone should see these movies – with good reason. They’re some of the most offensive pictures ever created, and they’re…
John Michael McDonagh’s Calvary: The Mystery of Faith and Forgiveness
“I am going to kill you, Father, because you are innocent.” That line, delivered by an anonymous and unseen penitent in the opening scene of John Michael McDonagh’s Calvary, dominates all that follows. And yet, the actual plot of McDonagh’s second feature pays little mind to the threat and all it entails. And because of…
Steven Knight: The Screenwriter as Auteur?
Regular readers of Curnblog no doubt recall fondly the slugfest Simon Butler and I engaged in a while back about the validity of the auteur theory. I don’t think we changed anyone’s minds, but hopefully it provided some reasonable debate. As an opponent of the theory that unquestioningly elevates directors above everyone else in every…
Blurred Images: Nudity, ‘Dating Naked’ and the Need for More Censorship
Which is worse: racism or treating a woman as a sex object? I pondered this question recently after catching a snippet of Dating Naked (2014-present) — the ridiculous new show on VH1 featuring would-be romantic partners appearing au naturel — on TV. This silly program dares to blur any offending genitalia or breasts out, so…
The Greatest Sibling Filmmakers: Keeping Cinema in the Family
John Michael McDonagh’s new movie Calvary is quite good. And quite difficult. I intend to write about it in some detail in the near future, but I often find it better to think about difficult things for a while before committing fingertip to keyboard. So, in the meantime, I’m using McDonagh as a springboard to…