Early on in David Cronenberg’s Crash (1996), James Spader’s eponymous James is driving Holly Hunter’s Helen to the airport after the latter’s husband has been killed and her car destroyed. As they drive, the sexual tension between the two is visceral, and James pulls at his seatbelt in frustration–almost as though thumbing at the belt… Continue reading The long view: David Cronenberg’s ‘Crash’ and Roe versus Wade
Tag: Film
The beauty and subtlety of Spider-Man 2
Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man 2 (2004) is one of my favorite films. While the original Spider-Man (2002) sees Peter Parker internalizing the adage that “with great power, comes great responsibility,” Spider-Man 2 takes this message further: Peter learns the meaning not only of responsibility, but of commitment, which in this film signals choosing responsibility even despite… Continue reading The beauty and subtlety of Spider-Man 2
Shrugging at collapse: the wisdom of “A Serious Man”
When I was first recommended the Coen brothers’ 2009 film “A Serious Man,” I had just been through a breakup with the woman I thought I would marry. I felt that my life was falling apart around me, and in my pain, I was longing for answers. Michael Stuhlbarg as Larry Gopnik The film’s protagonist,… Continue reading Shrugging at collapse: the wisdom of “A Serious Man”
The Lives of Others as the ultimate Enneagram five template
One of my all-time favorite films, 2006’s The Lives of Others, concerns life under the Stasi in east Germany before the fall of the Berlin Wall. In the film, a Stasi operative named Gerd Wiesler is tasked with surveilling a pair of lover-artists, writer Georg Dreyman and actress Christa-Maria Sieland, because the state suspects them… Continue reading The Lives of Others as the ultimate Enneagram five template
Like ships passing in the night: Sofia Coppola’s Lost in Translation
Sofia Coppola’s Lost in Translation (2003) is one of my favorite films. Apparently, it is Bill Murray’s favorite that he’s ever done, which is saying something. Bill Murray as Bob Harris In the film, Murray plays Bob Harris, an aging actor consigned to doing whiskey advertisements as he shifts away from film. These advertisements bring… Continue reading Like ships passing in the night: Sofia Coppola’s Lost in Translation
Jackson Holzberg Buckley 