Racial Issues

Will "Gatsby"'s Anti-Semitism Cost it Oscar Noms?

Movies with racist portrayals of African Americans haven't hurt their Oscar chances much--consider "Secretariat" or "Million Dollar Baby" or any number of well-meaning racially-charged movies that had problematic representations of African Americans ("The Help," "The Blind Side," "Crash," "Driving M...

All Tomorrow's Parties: "The Great Gatsby" Meet "Spring Breakers"

Within the span of a couple months, audiences and media have witnessed the debauched excess of the American Dream gone sour, of attractive young men and women imbibing themselves to delirium, violence and self-destruction. If there ever were a comment on the failed hopes and ideals of our curren...

Race, Class and Warfare at Tribeca

One of the most powerful new documentaries at this year's Tribeca, Dan Krauss’s well-crafted and compelling investigative expose "The Kill Team," hits all the right buttons: political injustice, moral outrage, and emotional catharsis. Of all the films I've previewed from this year's festival, Krau...

"Black" Films Face Obstacles Abroad; Are Foreign Film Markets Still Racist?

The Post-Katrina Politics of "Beasts of the Southern Wild"

Now that "Beasts of the Southern Wild" is far from the protective, progressive bubble of Sundance and venturing out into the wide, wide world of mainstream movie theaters this week, the fantastical movie is encountering increasing questions about what it says and shows about post-Katrin...

"Scenes of a Crime": Unjust Verdict Upheld as Doc Winner Hits Theaters

Adrian Thomas, the man at the center of the award-winning documentary "Scenes of a Crime" (Filmmaker Magazine's Best Film Not Playing at a Theater Near You, Grand Jury Prize Winner at Full Frame and DOC NYC), has not been granted an appeal, a state court has ruled, according to repo...

Strong Sundance Docs Raise Specter of Racism in U.S. and Abroad

I haven't yet seen "Slavery by Another Name," a new documentary that's premiering in Sundance this week, but the title evokes a theme I've seen running through a number of docs at this year's festival: the prevalence of racism in the histories of America and other countr...

The Political Monologue of the Year: Angela Davis

Top Ten Politically Effective Films: #1