Films that portray the way in which ordinary people have a right to choose public policies and can bring about political change by making officeholders accountable to the people.
HEROD’S LAW EXPLAINS A BASIC PRINCIPLE OF POLITICS Directed by Luis Estrada, Herod’s Law (La Ley de Herodes) is a satirical tale that takes place (and was filmed) in the desert town of San Pedro de los Saguaros, México, where angry non-Spanish-speaking Indian residents, according to the fable, lynched three corrupt mayors from 1944 to […]
THE FILM MAX ASKS WHETHER HITLER’S CAREER IN POLITICS WAS INEVITABLE Max, directed by Menno Meyjes, is ostensively about German art critic and dealer Max Rothman, but more importantly is a biopic of Adolf Hitler in the years 1917-1919. The film purports to show a critical turning point in the life of Hitler–and of the
A GERMAN FILM EXPOSES CLOSET NAZIS, THANKS TO YALE & STANFORD EXPERIMENTERS Why did so many ordinary Germans support Hitler and the Nazi persecution of the Jews? For some researchers, the explanation is rooted in personality factors resulting from childhood socialization. Social psychologist Kurt Lewin, in contrast, theorized that political and social forces impinging upon
IRAN PRACTICES AFFIRMATIVE ACTION BY BRINGING BALLOT BOXES TO THE PEOPLE Iran has elections every four years in which all citizens sixteen years of age and above are entitled to vote in a secret ballot for two candidates from a list of several presidential aspirants. The current liberalization trend in Iran is due to careful
CAR-WINDOW SOCIOLOGY OF THE CLASS STRUGGLE IN MÉXICO EMERGES IN Y TU MAMÁ TAMBIÉN Two seventeen-year-old Mexico City boys spend a summer together in the coming-of-age Mexican film Y Tu Mamá También, directed by Alfonso Cuarón. When the film begins, their girlfriends are about to leave for a vacation in Italy, though not before one
The Town is Quiet (La ville est tranquille) is about the impact of globalization on Marseilles, a once-bustling port now used primarily by fishing vessels. The focus is on the impact upon the people of a proud city that has become redundant. In search of new sources of employment-from research thinktanks to tourism-politicians of the left and
JOHN Q. ENCOUNTERS SICKNESS IN THE HEALTH INDUSTRY John Q. is an exposé about the 40 million Americans who have no health insurance and millions more who belong to health maintenance organizations (HMOs) that provide phony health insurance. The hero, John Qunicy Archibald (played by Denzel Washington), is a family man, a churchgoer, and a
A BLACKLISTED HOLLYWOOD SCREENWRITER SUFFERS A BLACKOUT IN THE MAJESTIC Far from Washington, Hollywood is an easy target for those in Congress to find scapegoats. After World War II, the pattern of emergence of Communist regimes in Eastern Europe, involving the media in part, frightened some Americans into believing that a similar fate was in
LUMUMBA TELLS THE TRUE STORY ABOUT CONGELESE INDEPENDENCE The English are inveterate gardeners, proud of turning adverse soil into lush and manicured panoramas of color. Based on a true story, Greenfingers focuses on Colin Briggs (played by Clive Owen), who has spent most of his life in prison for petty vandalism. One day he is
GOOD AND EVIL PRESENT CLEAR CHOICES IN ATLANTIS: THE LOST EMPIRE Atlantis: The Lost Empire, directed by Gary Trousdale and Kirk Wise, is yet another Disney cartoon story for kids, with fantastic beauty and a simple story, though the plot is aimed at teenagers more than toddlers. When the film begins, a quote from Plato
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