Film

Rock Steady: How the Former Oscars Host Spent a Year Plotting His Slap Back

Rock Steady: How the Former Oscars Host Spent a Year Plotting His Slap Back Rock Steady: How the Former Oscars Host Spent a Year Plotting His Slap Back

Chris Rock revives the furor over The Slap on the eve of the 2023 Oscars. 

Mar 9, 2023 / Ben Schwartz

Daniel Giménez Cacho as Silverio in Bardo

The Many Labyrinths of Alejandro Iñarritu’s Oscar-Nominated “Bardo” The Many Labyrinths of Alejandro Iñarritu’s Oscar-Nominated “Bardo”

Disjointed, unnerving, and divisive, Bardo challenges its viewers to make sense of it.

Mar 9, 2023 / Books & the Arts / Ilan Stavans

Oscar statues, 1877.

What the Oscars Represent: Meritocracy Without Merit What the Oscars Represent: Meritocracy Without Merit

In Michael Schulman’s extensive history of the awards, Oscar Wars, he documents how the institution’s reactionary origins still leak into today’s film culture.

Mar 8, 2023 / Books & the Arts / David Hajdu

Academy Fight Song: The Politics Behind Andrea Riseborough’s Surprise Oscar Nod

Academy Fight Song: The Politics Behind Andrea Riseborough’s Surprise Oscar Nod Academy Fight Song: The Politics Behind Andrea Riseborough’s Surprise Oscar Nod

Was a viral nomination push another exercise in white privilege?

Feb 24, 2023 / Ben Schwartz

The Tragedy of “Till” Is Our Failure to Grasp Its Radical Politics

The Tragedy of “Till” Is Our Failure to Grasp Its Radical Politics The Tragedy of “Till” Is Our Failure to Grasp Its Radical Politics

Director Chinonye Chukwu shifts the lens from Emmett Till’s tortured body to Mamie Till-Mobley’s vibrant mind and the movement she helped spawn.

Feb 22, 2023 / Robin D.G. Kelley

A scene from Women Talking

The Lessons of “Women Talking” The Lessons of “Women Talking”

A recent adaptation of the Miriam Toews novel asks a difficult question: What if the people we love are the people we fear?

Feb 14, 2023 / Books & the Arts / Larissa Pham

The Beautiful and Useless Return of “Avatar”

The Beautiful and Useless Return of “Avatar” The Beautiful and Useless Return of “Avatar”

James Cameron has spent a fortune to bring audiences back to Pandora. Was it worth it?

Feb 8, 2023 / Books & the Arts / Erin Schwartz

Threat inflation: the Chinese balloon floats over Billings, Mont., on Wednesday, February 1.

Raving Balloonatics Take Over Washington Raving Balloonatics Take Over Washington

"Mr. President, we must not allow…a balloon gap!"

Feb 6, 2023 / Jeet Heer

Victor Navasky speaking on stage

Victor Navasky: A Generous, Mischievous, Endlessly Entertaining Genius Victor Navasky: A Generous, Mischievous, Endlessly Entertaining Genius

The Nation’s former publisher remembers his former partner and lifelong friend.

Jan 27, 2023 / Obituary / Hamilton Fish

Serge Daney’s Cinema of Life and Death

Serge Daney’s Cinema of Life and Death Serge Daney’s Cinema of Life and Death

The French critic and editor helped establish a critical vision of film that was both rigorous and revolutionary.

Jan 26, 2023 / Books & the Arts / Max Nelson

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