News

It’s like I’m back in college again, when, juggling both an English and a History Major, I had to read several books at a time. I never got the time management right at that point, but that's another story. Since my Weekly Movie Club–consisting of old college friends–decided to watch To Have and Have Not (1944) for next Sunday’s discussion, I decided to read the Hemingway novel the film is based on first. In terms of my critical theory studies, I must continue–the summer is

“Live from New York, it’s Saturday Night…!” How many celebrities have made this exclamation? With the fifty years this variety show has been on the air, I can’t even begin to count. And no, I will not consult Gemini to find out. Saturday Night (2024), a film by Jason Reitman (Thank You for Smoking), is an attempt to chronicle an American cultural mainstay’s troubled birth. Is it successful? I should think so. As a film, it doesn’t ask much of its audience: just behold, be e

What images come to mind when you think of a seafaring film? Adventure? Survival? Captains and first mates? Pirates? Landlubbers wobbling unevenly out of sync with their delicate constitutions? A film in this genre can summon many impressions. But the real question is, will you get seasick watching one? Or simply get sick of all the drama? This film is based on a book of the same name by Nathaniel Philbrick. I usually kick myself for viewing a film before I read the source

I love interesting historical people. Johnny Appleseed, née John Chapman, fits this bill nicely. The book follows author Isaac Fitzgerald’s yearlong journey from Leominster, Massachusetts, to Fort Wayne, Indiana, retracing the path of the subject to confront personal grief, family mental illness, and American myths. This book–which I’ll call nonfiction narrative–also acts as a memoir, travelogue, and history, exploring the folklore surrounding John Chapman. I look forward t

Redemption. This theme appears in many pieces of literature. Mostly, for this review’s purposes, it is explored in mystery fiction, especially American, hardboiled stories. It refers to atoning for past mistakes, bettering oneself, and seeking relief from guilt or a difficult past. The protagonist/detective herein seeks it constantly, either consciously or subconsciously, and may approach resolution, but never really quite gets there, despite the motivational aspects. This i

“That’s Really Super, Supergirl,” is an old alternative British pop-rock tune from a band I listened to in my younger, more carefree years, XTC. It’s about the singer/speaker bemoaning, via superhero tropes, his disappointment after being dumped. Kind of like how I felt after I saw Supergirl (2026). But I don’t need to use superhero analogies here to express my disappointment. The film itself is a victim of poor script and story choices. With a wealth of lore the D.C. Unive

Dreams. What are they, really? What are they made of? What happens when we do so? And mostly, why do we have them? Bear with me. I’m on a Christopher Nolan (The Dark Knight) kick. Since I’ve recently seen, loved, and reviewed his take on The Odyssey (2026), I’m curious as to how his filmmaking odyssey began–see what I did here?–and what exactly makes him tick. Does mythology influence, inspire, or in some way move him? I’m curious to see. I’ve added a number of his films to

Zeus’ Law. Hospitality to strangers. Guest-friendship. Hosts are required to protect, feed, and shelter travelers. While guests must act respectfully in return. It was a fine idea in ancient Greece, and still holds water today. So what happened to it? Where are we now if we don’t follow this age-old yet simple rule? Or have we always really followed it? The Odyssey, written and directed by auteur Christopher Nolan (Memento), tells the story of one of the first recorded rule

The next book on my reading list is a noir mystery by one of our beloved national authors, Walter Mosley. Down the River Unto the Sea (King Oliver Book 1) introduces us to a disgraced NYPD detective, Joe King Oliver, who, ten years later, investigates the frame-up that cost him his job and ninety days of his life on Riker’s Island, while defending a radical journalist accused of murdering two cops. It promises all of the hardboiled tropes. A main character with a bent on red

If you were an ardent, unwavering, ultimate fan, what would your innermost desire be? Would you want an infinite continuation of your favorite sci-fi universe? The classic “old” universe, not that crappy “new” one? Would you want to become, in real life, the class and character in your favorite Massive Multiplayer Online Roleplaying Game (MMORPG)? Would you want the love and dedication of a jaw-droppingly, heart-stoppingly, stutter-inducingly attractive partner in a world whe

I’m on a quest this summer, since I’m not teaching a program and have a surplus of time on my hands. And no, I don’t plan to slay a mighty dragon, unearth a golden chalice, or return an ancient artifact to its original resting place. Gods, making regular visits to the YMCA is usually enough of a mission for me. But I have a focus. I plan to learn something. And I’ve quite a detailed plan to do so. Critical Theory–this is what I’m teaching myself this summer, thanks to the re

Do you remember those old S.A.T. analogy questions? I know I’m showing my age here, but bear with me. GUILT : SHAME :: Now do you remember them? Perhaps? Your goal for this tedious type of question was to analyze the relationship between a set of capitalized words, then select the answer choice that exhibited the very same connection. It was an arduous examination of your vocabulary skills. Now does it ring a bell? Thank the gods The College Board discontinued using them a

Media comparisons. We all make them. We all forge opinions about them. “The original is way better than the sequel.” “The remake sucks.” “This is nothing like the book.” “The French version was funnier.” Yet, if there is a foreign film that Hollywood executives believe is a gem–read: it made lots of money–then Hollywood will take a risk and remake it, despite many reasons warning why this film may tank. In many cases, audiences prefer the original, anyway. Why is that? I have

Like the ancient myths they were modeled after, superhero tales provide a lens into human values. Since the inception of Superman and the prototypes before him, superheroes have emerged as the finest representations of humanity, those who protect our lives as well as model the behaviors, manners, and attitudes we all should exhibit. Superman was necessary during WWII, when the “Golden Age” of superheroes appeared. We all needed a hero, not just young Americans. We needed som

Some concepts are tough to illustrate. Take the novel, Motherless Brooklyn, by Jonathan Lethem, for instance, where a handicapped private detective must solve a mystery. The complication is that protagonist and narrator Lionel Essrog‘s handicap is Tourette’s Syndrome. It’s interesting to read/witness, especially how the condition interrupts Lionel’s thinking and complicates his interviewing of suspects. I imagine it wasn’t easy to write. Let’s consider anterograde amnesia as

Time to read a vampire story. Close friend of mine and fellow writer, Brian Patrick McKinley, wrote Ancient Blood: A Novel of the Hegemony years ago as the beginning of a trilogy. Two of his books have been published, and I have the honor of helping him workshop the third installment. I recall elements I first encountered when I initially read this novel, but I’ll save all of that for my review. I already know that I like this book, so let’s hope I can get some deeper unders

Theme. You remember that concept, don’t you? From back in high school? Perhaps you recall the titles that accompanied it, like The Great Gatsby, Catcher in the Rye, Romeo and Juliet, or, gasp! Hamlet? Theme was the thing your English Teachers tried to hammer into your brain while you were too busy trying to figure out the goddamned plot. Your Social Studies Teachers wouldn’t go near it, not with all the names, dates, and events you had to memorize to pass that class. But the

From one noir novel to another. The Esmerelda Goodbye, by Corey Lynn Fayman, revolves around an idealistic rookie cop, Jake Stirling, who finds himself caught in a dangerous mix of mobsters, corrupt officials, and Hollywood stars as he attempts to redeem his father's tarnished reputation. This book appears to have everything, featuring a young protagonist who has yet to become jaded but still has a redemption arc. I’ll let you know what I think when I’m through.

First off, this is the type of book I want to write, the one I believe I am writing. It's noir mystery mixed with urban fantasy, steering clear of the usual, sometimes tired fantasy tropes. It’s Raymond Chandler and Jim Butcher all in one. Even the setting is a dead-ringer for Dashiell Hammett’s San Francisco. In A Night Owl Slips Into A Diner (Alexander Southerland, P.I. Book 4), by Douglas Lumsden, the story is pure hardboiled mystery peppered with obscure fantasy elements

It’s hard to watch a fifty-year-old film through a fifty-year-old critical lens. I know I can’t, especially since I’ve been studying Critical Theory lately. I see it, and consider it, from both my present artistic point of view and my humanist one. And I’m glad I’ve seen M*A*S*H (1970) before—and enjoyed it before—because if this were the first time I had viewed it, my opinion would be quite different. I’d have unapologetically hated it outright. With that in mind, the movie