55 STEPS FEATURE THE ASCENT OF THE RIGHTS OF MENTAL PATIENTSPatients are now accustomed to signing their name multiple times before their blood is drawn or other medical procedures are undertaken. But up to 1985, mental patients were deemed incompetent, so decisions were made for them without consultation, as the opening scene vividly demonstrates. Diagnosed with […]
AT ETERNITY’S GATE LOCATES VINCENT VAN GOGHIn the 19th century, up-and-coming artists headed for Paris, banding together to provide subsistence similar to what La Bohème portrays. Vincent Willem Van Gogh (played by Willem Dafoe), not recognized as a great artist by his contemporaries, cannot not abide how the group operates. Neither can his best friend Paul
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FINAL VOTING BEGINS FOR BEST POLITICAL FILMS OF 2016 To cast your ballots, if you feel that a film should receive the award, mark your ballot YES forthat film. Only one film can be marked YES in each category! If inappropriate, mark NO. If you did not see a film, put an X for NEUTRAL. Polls close at midnight February 28. If
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VOTING CONTINUES ON NOMINEES FOR BEST POLITICAL FILMS OF 2016 Presidential elections years usually flood theatres with politically significant films. During 2016, however, fewer films were nominated in the four categories for Political Film Society awards than 2015. No films were nominated to inspire confidence in democracy, three films related to peace (Eye in the
Political Film Review #530 Read More »
VOTING BEGINS ON NOMINEES FOR BEST POLITICAL FILMS OF 2016 Presidential elections years usually flood theatres with politically significant films. During 2016, however, fewer films were nominated in the four categories for Political Film Society awards than 2015. No films were nominated to inspire confidence in democracy, three films related to peace (Eye in the
Political Film Review #529 Read More »
SILENCE TRIES TOEXPLAIN HOW JAPAN RESISTED CHRISTIANITY Portuguese Catholics introduced Christianity to Japan in 1549, when Francis Xavier brought three Japanese Catholic converts from India, seeking to start a church in Nagasaki. Today only 1 percent of Japanese are Christians. Directed by Martin Scorsese, Silence is based on an historical novel by Shusako Endo that begins in the
SILENCE TRIES TOEXPLAIN HOW JAPAN RESISTED CHRISTIANITY Portuguese Catholics introduced Christianity to Japan in 1549, when Francis Xavier brought three Japanese Catholic converts from India, seeking to start a church in Nagasaki. Today only 1 percent of Japanese are Christians. Directed by Martin Scorsese, Silence is based on an historical novel by Shusako Endo that begins in the
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I, DANIEL BLAKE EXPOSES LIFE AMONG THE UNDERCLASS Director Ken Loach has done it again: He has brought to the screen a slice of life that those who live in comfort never see—but must see if they want to understand how the underclass nowadays tries to survive. The film is about a certain Daniel Blake (played
I, DANIEL BLAKE EXPOSES LIFE AMONG THE UNDERCLASS Director Ken Loach has done it again: He has brought to the screen a slice of life that those who live in comfort never see—but must see if they want to understand how the underclass nowadays tries to survive. The film is about a certain Daniel Blake (played
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BARRY IS NOT ABOUT HAPPINESS IN NEW YORK CITY After time in Honolulu, Jakarta, and Los Angeles, Barry Obama (magnificently played by Devon Terrell) hops a plane to the Big Apple on a day near his 20th birthday to go to Columbia College so he can advance intellectual pursuits. Director Vikram Gandhi seeks to explain how