Sarah Boslaugh < PopMatters

Reviews

Thursday, May 23 2013

There's More Than a Touch of Irony In 'Gregory Crewdson: Brief Encounters'

Gregory Crewdson's photographs are so packed with visual information that they reward minutes and even hours of scrutiny, and the fact that you must be an active participant in the process of creating meaning makes them that much more memorable.

Wednesday, May 15 2013

The 'Lord Peter Wimsey Mysteries: Complete Collection' Offers Pleasant Escapism

Wimsey’s world, of posh city clubs and grand country houses, is a pleasant place to escape to for a few hours, without any need to worry too much about whether it bears more than a passing resemblance to any historical reality.

Tuesday, April 9 2013

A Hardboiled Look at Chicago Politics: 'Boss: Season 2'

The second season of Boss delves further into the twisted power relations among a cast of larger-than-life characters.

Friday, March 15 2013

An Influential Verité Documentary: 'Chronicle of a Summer'

Sociologist Edgar Morin and anthropologist/filmmaker Jean Rouch raise questions about documentary truth and reality in Chronicle of a Summer.

Monday, March 4 2013

Dennis Côté's 'Bestiaire' Prompts Reflection on the Conventions of Cinematic Narrative

Because most people are used to films that tell stories or make arguments, the natural response is to impose meaning on the images in Bestiaire, a response that reduces their immediateness and reality.

A Glossy, Toothless Sherlock Holmes Pastiche: 'The Seven-Per-Cent Solution' [30.Jan.13]

'The Tin Drum' Is a Big Film, Loaded with Symbols and Multiple Layers of Meaning [22.Jan.13]

Mercifully, No One Sings 'Que sera, sera' in the 1934 Version of 'The Man Who Knew Too Much' [18.Jan.13]

The Western World's Introduction to Japanese Cinema: 'Rashomon' [19.Dec.12]

Perfect for Theatre Nerds: 'Slings & Arrows: The Complete Collection' [6.Dec.12]

At the Height of Their Powers: 'Hungarian Rhapsody: Queen Live in Budapest' [16.Nov.12]

A Memorable Staging of a Sondheim Musical: 'Stephen Sondheim's Company' [13.Nov.12]

Strong Women and Dark Doings: 'Three Wicked Melodramas from Gainsborough Pictures' [9.Nov.12]

One of Marcel Carné's Best Films, Beautifully Restored: 'Les Visiteurs du Soir' [30.Oct.12]

'My Trip to Al-Qaeda': A Little too Much of Lawrence Wright, A Little too Little of His Subjects [15.Oct.12]

Good Old-Fashioned Creepiness: 'Universal Classic Monsters: The Essential Collection (Blu-Ray)' [2.Oct.12]

'Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations Collection 7': More Travel Adventures with the Restless Chef [2.Oct.12]

'Oranges and Sunshine': A Muted Telling of a Tragic Episode in History [9.Jul.12]

Reshaping the Stories: 'Scripting Hitchcock' [20.Jun.12]

Life in the Adjunct Corps, Far from the Ivy League: 'In the Basement of the Ivory Tower' [14.Jun.12]

Two Guys on the World's Greatest Road Trip: 'Route 66: The Complete Series' [11.Jun.12]

'Hondo': A Man, A Woman, and The West [11.Jun.12]

The Fun Is In the Details: 'Agatha Christie's Poirot, Series 3' [30.May.12]

If You Take Film Noir Seriously, You'll Want 'Film Noir: The Directors' [22.May.12]

Japan's Obsessive Collective: 'Otaku Spaces' [27.Apr.12]

The Verdict for 'Tora! Tora! Tora!' Is the Same as the Event It Depicts: Japan 1, America 0 [23.Apr.12]

One of the Best Mini-Series of All Time is Back, This Time With Lots of Extras: 'I, Claudius' [18.Apr.12]

Corman's World: Exploits of a Hollywood Rebel [26.Mar.12]

'54': A Tame Look at an Era that was Anything but Tame [13.Mar.12]

A Superficial Look at an Important Subject: 'The Cartoon Introduction to Economics Volume Two' [20.Feb.12]

''Memphis': A Tony Award-Winning Musical Brought to Your Living Room [24.Jan.12]

'The Complete Record Cover Collection': Vibrant Musical Illustrations from R. Crumb [17.Jan.12]

'Sophia Loren: Award Collection' Wherein Her Beauty is Matched by Her Skill [11.Nov.11]

'Wendy and the Lost Boys' Is Catnip for Wendy Wasserstein's Fans [30.Sep.11]

'Diana Rigg at the BBC': A Worthy, Albeit Partial, Tribute to a Worthy Actor [28.Sep.11]

'The Twilight Zone Season 5': A Superb Presentation of a Classic Television Series [2.Sep.11]

'NEDS': Tough choices in '70s Glasgow [24.Aug.11]

For Every Problem There Is a Solution: 'Prince of Poisoners: The Life & Crimes of William Palmer' [2.Aug.11]

Three Trips to Agatha Christie-Land: 'Agatha Christie's Poirot: The Movie Collection Set 6' [13.Jul.11]

'Lab Coats in Hollywood': The Onscreen Fusion Between Scientific and Hollywood-Type 'Truth" [27.Jun.11]

'Henri-Georges Clouzot's Inferno' Is a Tantalizing Look at a Famous 'Lost' Film [13.Jun.11]

'The Quotable Hitchens' Gives Us the Best of Hitchens, Arranged in a Convenient Dictionary Format [13.Jun.11]

'Helvetica and the New York City Subway System' Is a Splendid Visual History of Subway Signage [13.May.11]

'Kes': The Bird Appropriate to the Common Man [5.May.11]

'The Alan Bennett Collection': A Treat of Bennett's Style Combined with Eminent Actors [15.Apr.11]

'The Picture of Dorian Gray': An Uncensored Version of a Scandalous Classic [31.Mar.11]

With 'Yi Yi' Edward Yang Presents a Rich Tapestry of Modern Life [24.Mar.11]

'Radio Shangri-la': An NPR Journalist's Adventures in Bhutan [4.Mar.11]

'All About Eve' on Blu-Ray Is a Superb Restoration of a Classy Film [14.Feb.11]

An Englishman in Japan: 'Shogun: 30th Anniversary Edition' [27.Jan.11]

'The Collected Plays of Paul Rudnick': Seven Plays by One of Theatre's Sharpest Wits [27.Jan.11]

'Hagakure': A Manga Guide to Bushido [21.Jan.11]

'Map of the Sounds of Tokyo': Pretty to Look At [21.Jan.11]

'Alejandro González Iñárritu' Provides an Excellent Analyses of the Filmmaker's Style [5.Jan.11]

The 12-Disk Great Detectives Anthology' Is a Treat for Lovers of Classic British Sleuth Stories [10.Dec.10]

'Van Gogh: A Brush with Genius' Is Van Gogh, Heavily Bowdlerized [2.Dec.10]

'The Search for Sherlock Holmes': The Man Who Never Lived [18.Nov.10]

'Sondheim! The Birthday Concert': A Suitable Celebration for One of the Giants of Musical Theatre [12.Nov.10]

'Dante's Divine Comedy', from a Left-Handed Designer [11.Nov.10]

'The Oath': American Intelligence Gets it Wrong [27.Oct.10]

The Man Who Left Too Soon' Provides a Superficial Look at the Millennium Trilogy and its Author [18.Oct.10]

'Howl: A Graphic Novel' Wails Brilliantly Into the 21st Century [15.Oct.10]

'The Haunting Cinema of Frantisek Vlasil': a Political Allegory and a Sensitive Study of Childhood [14.Oct.10]

'Japanese Schoolgirl Confidential': They're Sparkly, Sexy and Can Really Kick Ass! [17.Sep.10]

'Charlie Chan': An New Take on the Honorable Detective [16.Sep.10]

'Manga and Philosophy': More Connections Than You Might Think [31.Aug.10]

With 'Selling Hitler', You'll Laught 'til You Plotz [6.Aug.10]

Laura Huxley Has Her Say About Laura Huxley in 'Huxley on Huxley' [4.Aug.10]

'Project 798: New Art in New China' Conducts Interviews From the Heart of Beijing's Art District [3.Aug.10]

'The American Stage' Is Best Enjoyed As Theatre As Literature [7.Jul.10]

Three Mel Brooks Films Now on Blu-ray -- Alas, They're Not the Best of Brooks [7.Jul.10]

An Overview of American Film Criticism from 1896 to Today [19.May.10]

Bulletproof Salesman [8.Apr.10]

Reading the Plays of Wendy Wasserstein by Jan Balakian [16.Mar.10]

Screen World Volume 60: The Films of 2008 by Barry Monush [28.Jan.10]

Theatre World 65: 2008-2009 by Ben Hodges [28.Jan.10]

The Playbill Broadway Yearbook [7.Jan.10]

Graphic Novel: 12 Days [15.Dec.09]

The Brontë Collection [11.Dec.09]

Who Does She Think She Is? [30.Nov.09]

Atom Egoyan's The Adjuster by Tom McSorley [24.Nov.09]

Football: An Encyclopedia of Popular Culture by Edward J. Rielly [19.Nov.09]

India Exposed: The Subcontinent A-Z by Clive Limpkin [4.Nov.09]

Cinema Different: Different Cinema Volume 3 [27.Oct.09]

The Knowledge Book: Everything You Need to Know to Get By in the 21st Century [8.Oct.09]

Traveling with Yoshitomo Nara [1.Oct.09]

When Gay People Get Married by M.V. Lee Badgett [17.Sep.09]

And Here's the Kicker by Mike Sacks [18.Aug.09]

Melvin Monster [11.Aug.09]

Whatever Happened to Tanganyika? by Harry Campbell [3.Aug.09]

My Remarkable Journey by Larry King [3.Aug.09]

Moomin Book Four by Tove Jansson [21.Jul.09]

Not Becoming My Mother by Ruth Reichl [14.Jul.09]

Studs Terkel's Working: A Graphic Adaptation [24.Jun.09]

Albert Maysles by Joe McElhaney [8.Jun.09]

It's the Pictures That Got Small by Christine Becker [28.Apr.09]

Marcel Proust: A Life by Edmund White [7.Apr.09]

Behind the Pink Curtain by Jasper Sharp [26.Mar.09]

Hollywood’s Ancient Worlds by Jeffrey Richards [20.Feb.09]

Blogs

Wednesday, December 2 2009

Studs Terkel’s Working: A Graphic Adaptation

Studs Terkel’s Working: A Graphic Adaptation - New Press [$22.95]

Saturday, August 29 2009

Back to the '50's and up to the present

Jules Feiffer's groundbreaking Village Voice comics delivered a satirical take on current events and paved the way for contemporary strips like Tom Tomorrow’s “This Modern World” and David Rees’ “Get Your War On”. This week's Iconographies focuses on The Explainers the recent collection of Feiffer's Village Voice comics.

Features

Wednesday, September 2 2009

Explainers: Back to the '50's and Up to the Present