“Humor Is A Weapon: A Conversation with John Waters”
At Roger Ebert.com, Marya E. Gates has a great conversation with John Waters. Read it here.
Bodies, Bodies, Bodies–The Body Genres in Ti West’s X and Mimi Cave’s Fresh
Horror, like porn, is meant to evoke a physical reaction. They, alongside melodrama, form the trio of genres which are described as “body genres” by my favourite media theorist, Jenna Stoeber*. Stoeber argues that the body genres evoke emotional reactions of “fear, sadness, or arousal” that spill out […]
Now, Voyager and Mental Illness
At Vulture, Angelica Jade Bastién writes about Now, Voyager, its presentation of mental illness and hope. “In the years since its release, the film has garnered a reputation as Davis’s best performance and a quintessential example of the women’s picture, a proto-feminist subgenre that took shape in 1930s […]
Scandal, Melodrama, White Hats and Sharks
Rowan Pope: There is, incidentally, a point. If there are no more white hats, if the deck is always stacked, and if everyone you love is a monster, there is, in fact, someone worth saving. Olivia Pope: Who? Rowan: Everyone! Everyone is worth saving! Even the monsters, even […]
“Without America’s Soap Operas We Would Never Have Gotten Mad Men”
“Over the last couple of weeks, I’ve been binge-watching one of the most innovative series on television. Like many of the gems of the current TV renaissance, it features extended narratives with complex plots, intricate backstories, and layered characters. Its approach to storytelling is remarkably adventurous, shattering television, […]
Anything Can Happen In Riverdale
I never expected to be reading Archie comics. Archie Andrews’ irresistible appeal to ladies mystified me and I came late to an appreciation for soap operas and straight melodrama. Then there was residual stuff around romance, a punk rock hostility towards the wholesome squares, a dash of internalized […]
The Cultural Gutter 