Film

Palestinian filmmaker and Oscar winner for the documentary “No Other Land” Hamdan Ballal poses for a picture with his Oscar, as he recovers after Israeli settlers attacked him at home, in his village of Susya in the south of the occupied West Bank on March 26, 2025.

Must a Palestinian Win an Oscar for the World to Care When He’s Attacked? Must a Palestinian Win an Oscar for the World to Care When He’s Attacked?

The assault and arrest of Ballal Hamdan is horrendous, but the framing of the incident reproduces the idea that some lives are more worthy of defense than others.

Mar 27, 2025 / Sleman Altehe

JKF riding in a car through a parade.

JFK Assassination: The Final Secrets JFK Assassination: The Final Secrets

The release of the John F. Kennedy papers sets a standard for transparency that must also be applied to the current administration.

Mar 21, 2025 / Peter Kornbluh

Art Spiegelman, “Self-Portrait With Maus Mask,” 1989.

Art Spiegelman and the Inescapable Shadow of Fascism Art Spiegelman and the Inescapable Shadow of Fascism

The creator of Maus has learned that the past is always present.

Mar 3, 2025 / Jeet Heer

Tilda Swinton poses after attending a press conference for the Honorary Golden Bear award at the 75th Berlinale on February 14, 2025.

The Berlin International Film Festival in a Time of Crisis The Berlin International Film Festival in a Time of Crisis

During the Berlinale’s 75th anniversary, it felt like the world was coming apart—but at least we had the “borderless realm” of film.

Feb 26, 2025 / Linda Mannheim

Backlash or Blacklist? Hollywood’s Pro-Gaza Protesters Feel the Heat

Backlash or Blacklist? Hollywood’s Pro-Gaza Protesters Feel the Heat Backlash or Blacklist? Hollywood’s Pro-Gaza Protesters Feel the Heat

In whisper campaigns and puzzling career reversals, pro-Palestinian actors say that they're being punished for speaking out.

Feb 26, 2025 / Ben Schwartz

What the Paiva Family Means to Brazil

What the Paiva Family Means to Brazil What the Paiva Family Means to Brazil

In I’m Still Here, one Brazilian clan’s confrontation with the military dictatorship dramatizes the last half-century of Brazil’s democratic travails.

Feb 19, 2025 / Books & the Arts / Andre Pagliarini

Trump’s Mafia Shakedown Might Destroy NATO—if We’re Lucky

Trump’s Mafia Shakedown Might Destroy NATO—if We’re Lucky Trump’s Mafia Shakedown Might Destroy NATO—if We’re Lucky

America’s greedy gangster president is forcing European elites to finally reckon with the high price of protection.

Feb 17, 2025 / Jeet Heer

A still from “Hard Truths.”

The Uncomfortable Genius of Mike Leigh The Uncomfortable Genius of Mike Leigh

In “Hard Truths,” Leigh reminds us that a family dinner can tell the story of a whole society.

Feb 12, 2025 / Books & the Arts / J. Hoberman

The Elion-Hitchings Building in 2020 before its demolition.

The Dubious Return of the Brutalists The Dubious Return of the Brutalists

Why the stark 20th-century architectural style is back in vogue.

Feb 3, 2025 / Books & the Arts / Daniel Brook

David Lynch, 2002.

David Lynch’s Guts David Lynch’s Guts

His visceral films, which reflect the best and worst of American life, affected viewers in realms both conscious and unconscious.

Jan 22, 2025 / Books & the Arts / Vikram Murthi

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