India’s caste system dates back to 1500 BC and might be the world’s longest surviving form of social hierarchy. Though the system is no longer practiced—at least from a legal standpoint—it still permeates Indian society and politics much in the … Continue reading WRITING WITH FIRE
Luxury hotels are bizarre, magical places. They are like hermetically sealed chambers where every possible amenity has been accounted for: Food, drink, entertainment, even pieces of art dot endless hallways of carpet and soft lighting. Muzak plays in the background. … Continue reading THE CHAMBERMAID
On the surface, Return to Mount Kennedy, directed by Eric Becker, looks like your typical climbing doc, but Mount Kennedy is anything but. Jumping back and forth between 1965 and 2015, Return to Mount Kennedy focuses on Bobby Whittaker, a constant presence in the 1980s–’90s … Continue reading Bobby Whittaker on RETURN TO MOUNT KENNEDY
Made in 1925, Charlie Chaplin’s greatest comedy is also his most recognizable. From the Little Tramp (Chaplin) woefully underdressed in the Klondike to hunger so intense he envisions his cabin-mate as a large roast chicken. But it’s the dance of … Continue reading THE GOLD RUSH
On this week’s edition of After Image, I chat with Metro Arts’ producer Veronica Straight-Lingo about C’mon C’mon, out now in limited release, and Kurt Vonnegut: Unstuck in Time, available in select theaters on On Demand. Listen to After Image, … Continue reading
There’s an old story (probably embellished, possibly apocryphal) from Blackboard Jungle’s opening weekend. Not many people remember that 1955 teen drama starring Sidney Poitier and Glenn Ford, but everyone knows the song that made it famous: Bill Hayley & His Comets’ … Continue reading THE SPARKS BROTHERS
Martin has been immobilized. He’s only 40, but the life drained out of his face years ago. His wife barely talks to him, and his high school students arrange a parent-teacher conference to tell him he’s terrible. While at a … Continue reading ANOTHER ROUND (DRUK)
What do the young people of today think about the world they’re growing up in? That’s what Johnny (Joaquin Phoenix) is trying to find out. He’s a radio journalist flying around the country collecting snippets from subjects and ambient sounds … Continue reading C’MON C’MON
Nothing is easier than to denounce the evildoer; nothing is more difficult than to understand him. —Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Crime and Punishment His name is Howard Ratner (Adam Sandler), and he deals in jewels, watches, gems—all that glitters is gold to him. … Continue reading UNCUT GEMS
Michael J. Cinema 
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