Barry Gifford, who has been hailed as “William Faulkner by way of B-movie film noir,” authored more than 40 books of fiction, nonfiction, and poetry, and the bulk of Roy’s World concerns growing up in the 1950s when the post-war boom was … Continue reading ROY’S WORLD: BARRY GIFFORD’S CHICAGO
Before the Syrian Civil War in 2011, an estimated 2 million souls called Ghouta home. Less than 20% now reside in the suburb of Damascus. The rest either fled, were evacuated, or were killed. A few remained to help those … Continue reading THE CAVE
There is an often-repeated anecdote that Charlie Chaplin once entered a Charlie Chaplin look-alike contest and came in second. It’s a popular story, one that illustrates the emptiness behind celebrity and fame, but it is just a story. No hard … Continue reading ELVIS & NIXON
The soldier is shot. One bullet to the head just as he was going over the top. We learn his name, Gerber, but little else. The year is 1917, three years into the War to End All Wars. But Gerber … Continue reading ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT (IM WESTEN NICHTS NEUES)
The sages call it by many names: yagé, ambiwaska, aioasca, but most know it as ayahuasca: a hallucinogenic brew drunk during a spiritual ceremony. That’s why the Spanish conquistadors outlawed it, and the U.S. government classified it Schedule 1. But … Continue reading THE MEDICINE
On some level, every work of art is a reflection of the human condition. Who we are and how we relate to others and the world around us is the concern of every artist, but for some, that concern is … Continue reading ANOMALISA
Danish filmmaker Lars von Trier is a sadist, and a proud one at that. He likes to put his characters (mostly women) through hell and back just to see if they’ll come out the other side. They do, and it’s … Continue reading DANCER IN THE DARK
Even if you’ve never heard of Bert Berns, you’ve definitely heard his music. Brenda Reid of The Exciters described the prolific songwriter and record producer as “The white soul brother. … He put the soul in music.” And with hits … Continue reading BANG! THE BERT BERNS STORY
Cousins Vincent (Jesse Eisenberg) and Anton (Alexander Skarsgård) have a plan so crazy it just might work: Dig a one-foot-wide, thousand-mile-long tunnel from Kansas to New Jersey, install a fiber optic cable and strip an algorithm down to its bare … Continue reading THE HUMMINGBIRD PROJECT
Michael J. Cinema 
You must be logged in to post a comment.