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☆ Opinion: The stunning silence at the heart of ‘Twisters’
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-19 | by ( Opinion Noah Berlatsky | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Noah Berlatsky Noah BerlatskyAnd yet both, despite being centered on extreme weather events, avoid mentioning climate change directly. In the mid-1990s the right was already moving toward climate change denial. The characters’ silence is louder at a time when in real life many Republican leaders continue to deny climate change is a problem. The current Republican platform doesn’t mention global warming at all, and GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump has denied the scientific consensus on climate change. In a 2022 survey, only 23% of Republicans thought climate change was a major threat.

Persons: Noah Berlatsky, CNN — Lee Isaac Chung’s “, Noah Berlatsky Noah Berlatsky, ”, Kate, Daisy Edgar, Jones, Javi, Anthony Ramos, Tyler Owens, Glen Powell, she’s, Tyler, Lee Isaac Chung’s “, Donald Trump, James Whale’s, Frankenstein, Frankenstein ”, Bill Paxton, Helen Hunt, it’s, “, Twisters Organizations: CNN, YouTube, Warner Bros, Hollywood, Republican, GOP Locations: Chicago, Oklahoma, New York

☆ Opinion: It’s time more horror films push back against queer stereotypes
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-13 | by ( Opinion Noah Berlatsky | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

But the portrayal of trans women as predators was a new innovation that had a huge impact on the horror genre. Andit had a big impact on Jonathan Demme’s “The Silence of the Lambs” in which the terrifying serial killer, Buffalo Bill, is a predatory trans woman (or more precisely, as Jos Truitt has explained, Bill is a transphobic caricature of a trans woman). The danger isn’t from trans women — it’s from heterosexual cis patriarchs — a reality much truer to life than Hitchcock’s fever dream. Perhaps in part for that reason, the director is careful not to make Longlegs trans or gay. It’s not just “Longlegs” which displaces violence onto queer people: Movies like “Psycho” and “Silence of the Lambs” are often acts of aggression aimed by male directors at queer people (and especially at queer women).

Persons: Noah Berlatsky, —, Noah Berlatsky Noah Berlatsky, Oz Perkins, Julia Ducournau’s “, ”, John Logan’s “, Longlegs ”, “, Lee Harker, Maika Monroe, Perkins, Anthony Perkins, Norman Bates, Alfred Hitchcock’s, ” Hitchcock, Bates, he’s, Norman, fatales, Hitchcock, Brian DePalma’s, Jason, James Wan’s, Andit, Jonathan Demme’s “, Bill, Jos Truitt, Alfred Hitchcock, Harker, it’s, Harker’s, Hunter ”, Perkins doesn’t, Longlegs, Nicholas Cage, Berry Berenson, Ted Levine, Ken Regan, Orion, queerness, Marc Bolan, Buffalo Bill, It’s Organizations: CNN, FBI, Lambs, Paramount, “, DOJ, Buffalo, Twitter Locations: Chicago, Hollywood, UCLA

☆ Opinion: ‘Kinds of Kindness’ has a cultish take on toxic work culture
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-26 | by ( Opinion Noah Berlatsky | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

In his new film, “Kinds of Kindness,” though, Yorgos Lanthimos goes further. Jesse Plemons is Robert in Yorgos Lanthimos’ new film, “Kinds of Kindness." Workplace harassment is a pervasive problem in a huge range of professions, from farm work to domestic labor to Hollywood itself. Remote work saves companies money by reducing rent and relocation costs, and because workers who work from home are more satisfied with fewer pay raises. People in “Kinds of Kindness” are pushed to mistake domination for kindness.

Persons: Noah Berlatsky, Yorgos Lanthimos, Lanthimos, Noah Berlatsky Noah Berlatsky, Emma Stone, Jesse Plemons, Willem Dafoe, Margaret Qualley, Hong Chau, Joe Alwyn, Mamoudou Athie, Hunter Schafer, Robert, Plemons, Raymond, Dafoe, —, Chau, balk, Raymond’s largesse, don’t, Yorgos, Atsushi Nishijima, MeToo, Harvey Weinstein, Jamie Dimon, Raymond isn’t, Raymond kisses Robert, Emily, Stone, Omi, she’s, Donald Trump’s, Steve Wozniak, Musk, Steve Jobs, Trump, Roberts Organizations: CNN, Searchlight, Hollywood, JPMorgan, Elon, Apple Locations: Chicago, Hong, Hollywood

☆ Opinion: Why Anxiety from ‘Inside Out 2’ is such a relatable character to me
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-14 | by ( Opinion Noah Berlatsky | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

And while I would not say that I am the personification of anxiety, if you looked inside my head at the control board of my emotions, anxiety would be in charge more than I’d like to admit. Noah Berlatsky Noah BerlatskyMany people who live with a lot of anxiety would agree that anxiety is not a lot of fun. Anxiety doesn’t just keep Riley from her sleep, though. When I’m anxious, it’s often because I’m worrying about my loved ones. And her maybe obsessive attention and investment gives her some insights that Joy doesn’t have.

Persons: Noah Berlatsky, CNN — I’m, Maya Hawke, Noah Berlatsky Noah Berlatsky, I’m, ”, Riley, Kaitlyn Dias, —, Amy Poehler, Phyllis Smith, ” Riley, Kensington, Kelsey Mann, Meg LeFauve, Dave Holstein, haven’t, you’re, doesn’t, aren’t, Riley isn’t, they’re, Joy, — she’s, Joy doesn’t Organizations: CNN, Pixar Locations: Chicago, Minnesota, San Francisco

☆ Opinion: ‘Hit Man’ does what ‘Double Indemnity’ couldn’t
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-07 | by ( Opinion Noah Berlatsky | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

“Hit Man” suggests that when backing away from misogyny, men, too, have more options, more happiness and more love. “Double Indemnity” turned the trope into an indelible archetype for the morally ambiguous world of film noir. Barbara Stanwyck, Fred MacMurray and Tom Powers are pictured in Billy Wilder's "Double Indemnity." The patriarchal world of “Double Indemnity” is as bleakly loveless for men as it is for women. “Hit Man,” and other contemporary noir films, in contrast, are trying to imagine a way out of the “Double Indemnity” double bind.

Persons: Noah Berlatsky, CNN —, ” Phyllis Dietrichson, Barbara Stanwyck, Billy Wilder’s, Wilder, Stanwyck, Phyllis, Noah Berlatsky Noah Berlatsky, Richard Linklater’s “, ”, Women’s, Circe, Walter, Fred MacMurray, Tom Powers, Billy Wilder's, Everett, Walter staggers, Keyes, Edward G, Robinson, “, fatales, John McNaughton’s, there’s, —, Justine Triet’s “, William Oldroyd’s “ Eileen, femme, Eileen, Sandra Hüller, Sandra, Justine Triet's, Maddy Masters, Adria Arjona, she’s, She’s, Maddy, Gary Johnson, Glen Powell, moonlighting, Ron, Gary, Maddy isn’t, Gary doesn’t, Linklater, bleakly loveless Organizations: CNN, Everett, Gary Locations: Chicago, today’s Hollywood

☆ Opinion: What ‘Furiosa’ gets right about the climate crisis
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-24 | by ( Opinion Noah Berlatsky | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

However, George Miller’s “Mad Max: Fury Road” (2015) and its new prequel, “Furiosa,” provide some possible explanations. Like all the Mad Max films going back to the 1979 original, “Fury Road” and “Furiosa” are set in post-apocalyptic wastelands following some indeterminate eco-catastrophe. “Fury Road” and “Furiosa” focus on a citadel ruled by tyrannical, bloodthirsty and toothy-masked Immortan Joe (played in “Fury Road” by Hugh Keays-Byrne and in “Furiosa” by Lachy Hulme). Charlize Theron stars as Imperator Furiosa in Warner Bros. Pictures' and Village Roadshow Pictures' action adventure "MAD MAX: FURY ROAD," a Warner Bros. Pictures release. In both Furiosa films, such a society emerges in the Green Place, the home from which Furiosa (played in “Fury Road” by Charlize Theron and in “Furiosa” by Anya Taylor-Joy) was stolen as a child.

Persons: Noah Berlatsky, we’re, Noah Berlatsky Noah Berlatsky There’s, George Miller’s “, Max, “, Furiosa ”, Mad Max, Joe, Hugh Keays, Byrne, Lachy Hulme, they’ll, —, Charlize Theron, Furiosa, Anya Taylor, Joy, ”, We’re, Dick Cheney, Cheney, “ Furiosa, Chris Hemsworth, It’s Dementus, Dementus Organizations: CNN, Hollywood, Warner Bros ., Warner Bros . Pictures, Village, Pictures, Warner Bros, Century Studios, Twitter, Facebook Locations: Chicago, “, Hollywood

☆ Opinion: ‘The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare’ has a surprising secret
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-20 | by ( Opinion Noah Berlatksy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

Watch “Apocalypse Now” (1979), “Full Metal Jacket” (1987) or “Platoon” (1986) and you should know what war really means. “Ungentlemanly Warfare” features a disreputable band of riff raff brought together for a super-secret mission. Ritchie makes no such concessions to authenticity in “Ungentlemanly Warfare.”Henry Cavill is Gus March-Phillips in Guy Ritchie’s “The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare." Even when a war movie doesn’t actively mislead you, the promise of being privy to an unvarnished, authentic and extreme experience can be seductive. “It would decay in eternal peace.”Compared to that kind of cult of authentic war, “Ungentlemanly Warfare” feels fairly harmless, and not in a bad way.

Persons: Noah Berlatsky, Ryan, ”, Noah Berlatsky Noah Berlatsky Guy Ritchie’s “, it’s, Fernando Po, raff, Winston Churchill, Rory Kinnear, Gus March, Phillips, Henry Cavill, Anders Lassen, Alan Ritchson, Marjorie Stewart, Eiza, Ritchie, ” Henry Cavill, Gus, Guy Ritchie’s “, Daniel Smith, electroshock, Quentin Tarantino’s, Inglourious, Hitler, He’s, “, Tarantino, Brad Pitt, B.J, Novak, Quentin Tarantino's, they’ve Organizations: CNN, Ungentlemanly, British, Lionsgate Locations: Chicago, “ Dunkirk, ”, Spanish, Fernando, Vietnam

☆ Opinion: ‘Civil War’ is more than a reflection on America’s divisions
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-13 | by ( Opinion Noah Berlatsky | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

Noah Berlatsky Noah BerlatskyAlex Garland’s “Civil War” has mostly been discussed as a reflection of, and a warning about, America’s current partisan divisions. Unlike the actual US Civil War, this one doesn’t seem to have any particular racial or racist connotations. But it’s the same kind of cop out that powers most of Hollywood’s most iconic Vietnam war movies. Hollywood Vietnam war movies generally aren’t about whether America did the right thing, nor are they about how America’s choices affected people in Vietnam. Stanley Kubrick's "Full Metal Jacket" (1987), starring Matthew Modine as Joker, is based on the events of the Vietnam war.

Persons: Noah Berlatsky, CNN —, Viet Thanh Nguyen, Noah Berlatsky Noah Berlatsky Alex Garland’s “, ”, he’s, Garland, Nick Offerman, Lee, Kirsten Dunst, Joel, Wagner Moura, Jessie, Cailee, Sammy, Stephen McKinley Henderson, Lee Wagner, Trump, Libya’s Muammar Gaddafi, Jesse Plemons, that’s, Francis Ford Coppola’s, Stanley Kubrick’s, don’t, —, Dawn ”, Stanley Kubrick's, Matthew Modine, It’s, transfixed Organizations: CNN, Union, Hollywood, America, Central, Warner Bros Locations: Chicago, Vietnam, Viet, American, Washington, California, Texas, Hollywood Vietnam, American Vietnam, Hollywood

☆ Opinion: ‘Monkey Man’ knocks James Bond out of the ring
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-06 | by ( Opinion Noah Berlatsky | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

“Monkey Man” is set in a semi-fictionalized Mumbai, replete with homelessness, crime and swooping, askew camera angles. Action movies — even relatively gritty ones without fanciful superhero CGI — require a bigger outlay for location and stunts. “Monkey Man” was plagued by production difficulties and financial struggles. Mindless s**t. I wanted to give it soul.” That’s an admirable sentiment — and one that isn’t just restricted to action movies. “Monkey Man” growls and spits and beats its chest and leaps you’re never quite sure where.

Persons: Noah Berlatsky, …, Dev, Jordan Peele’s, Noah Berlatsky Noah Berlatsky, Peele, Patel, Dev Patel, Rana, Sikandar Kher, gyrating, John Wick, Gordon, James Bond, Chris Hemsworth’s Tyler, slogs, Paul Atreides, Jordan Peele, Vianney Le Caer, —, Bruce Lee’s, Carl Franklin’s, Alice Wu’s, Jordan, didn’t, ”, We’re, there’s, “, Peele hadn’t, ” Patel, you’re Organizations: CNN, Universal Pictures, Everett, Marvel Cinematic, Netflix Locations: Chicago, Mumbai, East Asia, South Asia, Eastern Europe, London, White, Hollywood

☆ Opinion: Kristen Stewart thriller is also a reminder of what queer kids are up against
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-13 | by ( Opinion Noah Berlatsky | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

CNN —The biggest threat to queer kids is too often their own homophobic parents. Noah Berlatsky Noah BerlatskyRose Glass’ “Love Lies Bleeding” wrestles with issues of queerness and parental cruelty with unusual and admirable directness. The couple at the center of “Love Lies Bleeding” are Lou (Kristen Stewart), a chain smoking, depressive gym manager and Jackie (Katy O’Brian), a would-be bodybuilding champion. Writer-director Rose Glass and actor Kristen Stewart in discussion on the set of "Love Lies Bleeding." Lou Sr.’s abuse is analogous to homophobic abuse and parallel with homophobic abuse, but it isn’t quite actually homophobic abuse.

Persons: Noah Berlatsky, Noah Berlatsky Noah Berlatsky Rose, doesn’t, Lou, Kristen Stewart, Jackie, Katy O’Brian, Lou Sr, Ed Harris, That’s, Rose Glass, Anna Kooris, It’s, Beth, Jena Malone, JJ, Dave Franco, Jackie’s, David Lynch’s, Daniel Kwan, Daniel Scheinert’s, ”, Tofilska Organizations: CNN, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Vanderbilt University Locations: Chicago, Jena

☆ Opinion: Oscars highlights from our culture critics
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-11 | by ( Cnn Opinion | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +18 min

CNN —Five CNN Opinion culture critics share their takeaways from the 96th Academy Awards. Gene Seymour: Hollywood’s next existential questionMost of the big, expensive movies walked away with Oscars Sunday night. Ryan Gosling performs the song "I'm Just Ken" from the movie "Barbie" during the Oscars on Sunday. Rita Moreno delivered a spicy ode to best supporting actress nominee America Ferrera, noting that her monologue from “Barbie” was one of the most memorable film moments. And the winners are... Robert Downey Jr. for best supporting actor in "Oppenheimer; Da'Vine Joy Randolph for best supporting actress in "The Holdovers"; Emma Stone for best actress in "Poor Things" and Cillian Murphy for best actor in "Oppenheimer."

Persons: Gene Seymour, Hollywood’s, Gene Seymour Jeremy Freeman, CNN Cord Jefferson, ” Jefferson, Jefferson, “, ” Cord Jefferson, Kevin Winter, “ Oppenheimer, Christopher Nolan, Cillian Murphy, Robert Downey Jr, “ Barbie, ”, Billie Eilish, O’Connell, “ Barbie ”, George Lucas, Steven Spielberg, Mark Harris, Sara Stewart, Barbie ”, Sara Stewart Todd Thompson, Ryan Gosling’s, “ I’m, Ken, Finneas O’Connell, Oscar, Eilish –, –, ” Eilish, “ Oppenheimer ”, Greta Gerwig’s, Gerwig, Margot Robbie, Jimmy Kimmel’s, “ Barbie ” snubs, Ryan Gosling, Chris Pizzello, Gosling –, snubs –, Eilish, Rita Moreno, America Ferrera, Jeff Yang, they’ve, Jack Palance, Seth McFarlane, Chris Rock, Warren Beatty, Faye Dunaway, they’d, ” Will Smith, Jada Pinkett Smith, Jimmy Kimmel, Catherine O’Hara, Michael Keaton, Twinsies Arnold Schwarzenegger, Danny DeVito, Melissa McCarthy, Octavia Spencer, Dale, Cord Jefferson, Finneas O'Connell, Barbie, Mike Blake, Kimmel, Donald Trump, Al Pacino, Pacino, — “ Oppenheimer, Celine Song, Bruce ”, ” Noah Berlatsky, Lily Gladstone, Noah Berlatsky Noah Berlatsky, Mollie Burkhart, Emma Stone, Cord Jefferson’s, Joy Randolph’s, Justine Triet’s, Randolph, Gladstone, Martin Scorsese’s, Burkhart, Ernest, Leonardo DiCaprio, Scorsese, she’s, DiCaprio, Robert DeNiro, Emma Stone’s, Bella, Noah Berlatsky, Holly Thomas, isn’t Robert Downey Jr, It’s, ” Holly Thomas Holly Thomas, Brett Easton Ellis’s, Timothee Chalamet, Austin Butler, Florence Pugh, Downey Jr, Tony Stark, Downey, Oppenheimer, Da'Vine Joy Randolph, Arturo Holmes, Louis Strauss, Katie Couric Organizations: CNN —, CNN, Warner Bros ., Hollywood, New York, The New York Times, Newsday, Entertainment, The Washington, Twitter, Abbott, Disney, Reuters, Teamsters, International Alliance, Employees, Globe, The, “, Downey, North, Katie Couric Media Locations: Pennsylvania, La, Asian America, America, Osage Nation of Oklahoma, Chicago, ”, Zendaya, North America, London

☆ Opinion: These three Oscar-nominated films couldn’t be more different. Together, they represent the change we need
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-07 | by ( Opinion Noah Berlatsky | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

All three films question male conventions and genres in ways that show exactly why we need more films by, and more nominations for, women-directed films. Les Films PelléasTriet’s “Anatomy of a Fall” is about a German novelist, Sandra (Sandra Hüller), accused of murdering her husband Samuel (Samuel Theis). Director Celine Song talks to lead actress Greta Lee on the set of "Past Lives." That doesn’t mean that women directors are less interesting or less original than male directors. Triet, Song and Gerwig have proved that women directors are uniquely positioned to question and rethink old genres, old stories and old ideas.

Persons: Noah Berlatsky, — Justine Triet’s “, Celine Song’s “, Greta Gerwig’s “, ” —, Noah Berlatsky Noah Berlatsky, it’s, Randa Haines, ”, —, Sandra Hüller, Justine Triet's, Pelléas, Sandra, Samuel, Samuel Theis, Billy Wilder’s, David Fincher’s, Triet, Nora Moon, Greta Lee, Hae Sung, Teo Yoo, Nora, Arthur, John Magaro, Celine Song, doesn’t, Gerwig, “ Barbie, “ Barbie ”, Barbie, Ken, Greta Gerwig, Margot Robbie, Jaap Buitendijk, Barbie ”, Bradley Cooper’s, Maestro ”, Christopher Nolan’s “ Oppenheimer, clichés, Alexander Payne’s “, Kelly Reichardt’s, Nida Organizations: CNN, USC, Initiative, Academy, New York Times, Everett, Warner Bros ., Warner Bros, Entertainment, ” Locations: Chicago, German, South Korea

☆ Opinion: ‘Dune: Part Two’ falls into a familiar – and telling – trap
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-26 | by ( Opinion Noah Berlatsky | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

His hero, Paul Atreides, is filled with doubts about his role as a Messianic leader and director of colonial conquest. (The distributor of “Dune” and “Dune: Part Two” shares a parent company, Warner Bros. So in the movie, it’s not just Paul who sees problems with his colonial power. Timothée Chalamet in "Dune: Part Two" Warner Bros. PicturesIn the book, Chani is mostly supportive of Paul, with few reservations. Paul feels bad for being the destined one; Herbert and Villeneuve, to varying degrees, seem to regret making Paul the destined one.

Persons: Noah Berlatsky, CNN — Frank Herbert’s, revel, Whitey, Edgar Rice Burroughs, James Fenimore Cooper, Rider Haggard, Herbert, Paul Atreides, Noah Berlatsky Noah Berlatsky Denis Villeneuve’s, ”, Villeneuve, he’s, Paul, Timothée, Atreides, Paul’s, Leto Atreides, Oscar Isaac, Arrakis, Emperor, Christopher Walken, Baron Harkonnen, Stellan, Leto, Jessica, Rebecca Ferguson, Natty Bumppo, it’s, Chani, Tasha Suri’s “, Ambha, Sriduangkaew’s, Thompson’s, Suri, Viet Thanh Nguyen, Paul doesn’t, “ Organizations: CNN, Warner Bros, Pictures Locations: Chicago, swash, Vietnam

☆ Opinion: ‘Drive-Away Dolls’ beats Florida’s right-wing politicians at their own game
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-23 | by ( Opinion Noah Berlatsky | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

But sometimes — as in Ethan Coen’s and Tricia Cooke’s wonderful “Drive-Away Dolls” — they’re more adventurous. Noah Berlatsky Noah BerlatskyCoen, best known for his collaborations with his brother Joel, co-wrote and co-directed “Drive-Away Dolls” with his wife and queer filmmaker, Cooke. Jamie (played by Margaret Qualley) and Marian (played by Geraldine Viswanathan) are pictured in "Drive-Away Dolls." Margaret Qualley and Geraldine Viswanathan co-star in Ethan Coen's and Tricia Cooke's latest film, "Drive-Away Dolls." “Drive-Away Dolls” tells the audience watching through that fence or otherwise, that queer looking, queer film, queer art and queer people are all a valuable, fun and worthy heist.

Persons: Noah Berlatsky, George Clooney, Ethan Coen’s, Tricia Cooke’s, Noah Berlatsky Noah Berlatsky Coen, Joel, Cooke, Jamie, Margaret Qualley, Beanie Feldstein, Marian, Geraldine Viswanathan, Marian’s, Gary Channel, Matt Damon, —, Coen, Tricia, Sen, don’t, Ron DeSantis, DeSantis, “, they’ve, Ethan Coen's, Tricia Cooke's, buttoned, John McNaughton’s, Norman, ” Organizations: CNN, Texas, Channel, Florida Gov Locations: Chicago, Tallahassee, Florida, American, Florida —, Marion, Hitchcock’s

☆ Opinion: ‘Lisa Frankenstein’ is giving us a new kind of monster
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-09 | by ( Opinion Noah Berlatsky | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

The new “Lisa Frankenstein,” by Zelda Williams in her directorial debut, hits some of the same notes. Kathryn Newton stars as Lisa Swallows and Cole Sprouse as The Creature in LISA FRANKENSTEIN, a Focus Features release. This is where “Poor Things” and “Lisa Frankenstein” diverge. Bella Baxter in “Poor Things” starts out as a clumsy innocent, but she becomes more knowledgeable and self-confident over time. “Lisa Frankenstein” shows why that’s a loss for all of us — and Lisa is ready to cut up the patriarchy to prove it.

Persons: Noah Berlatsky, CNN —, Mary Shelley’s, Frankenstein, ”, Victor Frankenstein, —, Shelley, Noah Berlatsky Noah Berlatsky, we’ve, “ Lisa Frankenstein, Yorgos Lanthimos, Lisa Frankenstein, Zelda Williams, Diablo Cody, “, Lisa, Kathryn Newton, She’s, Carla Gugino, Liza Soberano, Cole Sprouse, Lisa Swallows, LISA FRANKENSTEIN, Michele K, “ Lisa Frankenstein ”, Bella Baxter, she’s, Bella, Williams, Mary Shelley, Lord Byron, Celine Song’s “, Emma Stone, Atsushi Nishijima, Greta Gerwig’s, Barbie, “ Barbie, It’s, Cody, he’s, wouldn’t, Lisa Frankenstein ”, Barbie ”, “ Oppenheimer, Lily, Mary Organizations: CNN, REO, Searchlight Pictures Locations: Chicago, Hollywood, Taffy’s, “, Ireland

☆ Opinion: ‘Self Reliance’ takes on American individualism at its most absurd
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-12 | by ( Opinion Noah Berlatsky | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

CNN —Hollywood films of diverse genres have one point in common — they’re all about the most important person in the universe. That most important person could be an amnesiac assassin fighting a mysterious government conspiracy, or some guy (or girl) seeking true love. They are the main character; everyone else is secondary. The goal of life is success and self-actualization as the main character of your own dream. He’s the most important person in a whole range of familiar narratives, all crammed haphazardly into a 90-minute run time.

Persons: Noah Berlatsky, Noah Berlatsky Noah Berlatsky, Tony Robbins, Deepak Chopra, Tim Ferriss, Marianne Williamson, Jake Johnson’s, you’d, Tommy Walcott, Johnson, Natalie Morales, Andy Samberg, John Wick, baddies, Tommy, isn’t, Maddy, Anna Kendrick, —, he’s, squinty, “, ”, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Tommy isn’t, what’s, Barbie ”, “ Oppenheimer, we’d, you’ve Organizations: CNN, Hollywood, Truman Locations: Chicago

☆ Opinion: No one needed another Napoleon movie, but this one has something unexpected to say
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-20 | by ( Opinion Noah Berlatsky | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Napoleon, played by Academy Award-winning actor Joaquin Phoenix, is a talented young officer whose military victories quickly vault him into influence and power. The fact that Napoleon can’t live up to his own larger-than-life image is part of what makes Napoleon larger than life. There are obvious differences between Trump and Napoleon — Trump avoided the draft and was not a successful general; Napoleon was never elected and conquered large parts of Europe; Trump’s coup attempt was unsuccessful. “Napoleon” suggests that our fascination with grotesque populist windbags is itself a source of their power. Napoleon might not love this movie, but he’d surely enjoy seeing his face blown up there on the big screen.

Persons: Noah Berlatsky, Ridley Scott, Napoleon ”, Noah Berlatsky Noah Berlatsky, Scott deplores, he’s, ” Scott, Napoleon, Joaquin Phoenix, glamorize Napoleon, Scott, Napoleon sententiously, Josephine, Vanessa Kirby, grunting, can’t, it’s, Scott weren’t, Scott’s, It’s, Napoleon can’t, Donald Trump, Napoleon — Trump, Scott’s Napoleon, doesn’t, Trump, “ Trump, mediaQuant, slandered, “ Napoleon ”, ”, —, — you’re Organizations: CNN, Hollywood, Waterloo, Trump, New York Times, Republican Locations: Chicago, Europe, Elba, British, Austerlitz, Republic, France, Nazi

☆ Opinion: This Nicolas Cage movie is a hard lesson in being human
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-13 | by ( Opinion Noah Berlatsky | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

CNN —Across the political spectrum, there’s a consensus that social media is dangerous. Director Kristoffer Borgli’s latest film, “Dream Scenario,” half builds on, half parodies those fears and anxieties for its absurdist plot. It also suggests, though, that the dynamics and dangers of online existence aren’t exactly new and aren’t exactly about social media at all. “Dream Scenario” is about how, even before we could see short hip hop dance videos on loop, we’ve always been in each other’s skulls. As “Dream Scenario” suggests, for better and worse, to be human is to dream together.

Persons: Noah Berlatsky, Critics, Noah Berlatsky Noah Berlatsky, Kristoffer Borgli’s, Paul Matthews, Nicolas Cage, Paul, Paul doesn’t, ”, Janet, Julianne Nicholson, It’s, they’re, you’ve, he’s, Carl Jung’s, “ antelligence, stigmatize, isn’t, you’re Organizations: CNN Locations: Chicago, Swiss

☆ Opinion: This generation needs The Talking Heads as much as their parents did
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-22 | by ( Opinion Noah Berlatsky | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

But A24’s newly restored 40th anniversary print of the band’s legendary concert film “Stop Making Sense” feels like a moment for a reappraisal. Talking Heads’ lyrics are undeniably more elliptical than N.W.A.’s or the Dead Kennedys’. “Stop Making Sense” starts off within the bounds of that New Wave approach. Byrne’s idiosyncratic dancing and physical appearance are central to “Stop Making Sense,” and he never stops being malfunctioning, android or ectomorph. “Stop Making Sense” included singers Lynn Mabry and Ednah Hold, legendary Parliament-Funkadelic keyboardist Bernie Worrell, percussionist Steve Scales and The Brothers Johnson guitarist Alex Weir.

Persons: Noah Berlatsky, CNN —, Reagan, “, ” Noah Berlatsky Noah Berlatsky, Trump, Donald Trump, he’s, Devo, Blondie, Joy, Jonathan Demme, Chris Frantz, Jerry Harrison, Tina Weymouth, Alex Weir, Bernie Worrell, David Byrne, Steve Scales, Lynn Mabry, Ednah Holt, Jordan Cronenweth, ” Byrne, Byrne, — George Clinton, James Brown, Fela Kuti —, Johnson, Harrison, Weir, Mabry, they’re, Sly, ”, Cab Calloway, Weir’s, Al, Reagan’s, — Organizations: CNN, Police, ”, tha, Reagan GOP, Reagan Library, Republican, GOP, New, Joy Division, Weymouth Locations: Chicago

☆ Opinion: The Golda Meir movie starring Helen Mirren fails the test of history
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-26 | by ( Hilary Krieger | Opinion Noah Berlatsky | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

CNN —In Guy Nattiv’s new feature film “Golda,” which arrived in theaters Friday, Helen Mirren plays Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir during the crisis of the 1973 Yom Kippur War. Accordingly, the movie is inevitably fodder for an ongoing discussion about whether non-Jewish performers should play Jewish roles. They made significant advances, threatening all of Israel, until Israel ultimately turned the tide to retain the land it had acquired in 1967. Join us on Twitter and FacebookInstead, the point is that the Yom Kippur War was a complicated conflict for territory and geopolitical advantage, abetted by prejudice and intransigence on every side. White non-Jewish actors can be cast as White Jewish characters because White Jewish people (like White Irish people or White Italian people) are, at the moment, generally perceived and accepted as White.

Persons: Noah Berlatsky, Guy Nattiv’s, Golda, Helen Mirren, Golda Meir, Mirren, Noah Berlatsky Noah Berlatsky, ”, Mirren —, —, “ Golda ”, Moshe Dayan, There’s, Anwar Sadat, Sadat, Israel, Abraham Rabinovich’s, ” Rabinovich, Meir, Henry Kissinger, Liev Schreiber, Kissinger, it’s, Golda Meir's, Mirren’s, “ Lawrence, Dawn ”, Hitler, Hafez al, Assad, — Sadat, Golda ”, It’s, Bradley Cooper bafflingly, Leonard Bernstein, White, Helen Mirren’s Organizations: CNN, Israel’s, Twitter Locations: Chicago, ”, British, Israel, Syria, Egypt, Yom Kippur, Sinai, Yom, Russia, Germany, Soviet Union, Cambodia, Russian, Western

☆ Opinion: ‘No Hard Feelings’ with Jennifer Lawrence is a sex worker romcom that won’t admit it
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-23 | by ( Opinion Noah Berlatsky | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

Friday’s debut of “No Hard Feelings,” a sex work romcom that doesn’t want to admit to its own subgenre, is very much of our era. Noah Berlatsky Noah BerlatskyThe Jennifer Lawrence vehicle from Sony Pictures revolves around a sex worker who, like the film, doesn’t want to admit what she’s doing. In sex worker romcoms, you’re supposed to be scandalized at the sordidness — but in a fun way. Anti-sex and anti-porn advocates have put a lot of effort into (falsely) conflating sex work and sex trafficking. Every film, sex worker romcom or otherwise, doesn’t have to be enthusiastically political, or, for that matter, sexual.

Persons: Noah Berlatsky, we’re, Noah Berlatsky Noah Berlatsky, Jennifer Lawrence, Maddie, Lawrence, Uber, Laird, Matthew Broderick, Allison, Laura Benanti, Percy, Andrew Barth Feldman, ” Percy, romcoms, Billy Wilder’s “ Irma La Douce, Ron Howard’s, Vivian Ward, Julia Roberts, Edward Lewis, Richard Gere, Stock, Pixie “, Richard Gere’s Edward isn’t, Rebecca De Mornay’s Lana isn’t, revel, ”, you’re, Rebecca de Mornay, Lana, she’s, Irma La Douce, Barbara Stanwyck, Leo Grande ”, Nancy, Emma Thompson, Leo Grande, Daryl McCormack Organizations: CNN, Sony Pictures, Pictorial Press, Library, Twitter Locations: Chicago, Montauk , New York

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