fff

Reel to Real: Race, Class and Sex at the Movies is a collection of hooks’ essays on various films, as well as interviews with some lesser-known black filmmakers. I’ll keep this short, as I have 11 short reviews to write in the next 4 days. hooks is, as always, an engaging and straightforward writer, who can tackle complex theoretical topics while managing to keep her language simple. I love her analysis of movies, even the ones I haven’t seen - I wanted to take a look at Spike Lee’s Crooklyn after reading her essay, even though what she has to say is not a glowing endorsement. She also clearly knows a lot about film, briefly mentioning technical aspects while making her point about the politics portrayed - and her knowledge of film is encylopedic. She makes a point to mention and interview black filmmakers who are not only progressive in their politics, but advanced in their filmmaking, and she repeatedly makes it clear that there was a thriving black american cinematic tradition well before Spike Lee came along. Use this book to read as a companion to the movies she writes about - Crooklyn, Girl 6, Leaving Las Vegas, Pulp Fiction - or to come up with a list of lesser known, interesting films to watch like Killer of Sheep and Daughters of the Dust.

You’ve probably heard about McCain’s latest ad, which says that Obama wants to teach kindergartners comprehensive sex education before they learn to read. This is based on a bill he supported that would teach kids how to identify and report sexual predators. It’s real slimy. I think it’s pretty clear that any hope for a clean campaign from the McCain camp is gone.

The Obama campaign response?

Last week, John McCain told Time magazine he couldn’t define what honor was. Now we know why.

DAMN.

Read Pat Buchanan’s latest rant at Real Clear Politics. He buries the blatant race-baiting two-thirds of the way down:

Why did the selection of Sarah Palin cause a suspension of all standards and a near riot among a media that has been so in the tank for Barack even “Saturday Night Live” has satirized the infatuation?

Because she is one of us — and he is one of them.

Barack and Michelle are affirmative action, Princeton, Columbia, Harvard Law. She is public schools and Idaho State. Barack was a Saul Alinsky social worker who rustled up food stamps. Sarah Palin kills her own food.

Michelle has a $300,000-a-year sinecure doing PR for a Chicago hospital. Todd Palin is a union steelworker who augments his income working vacations on the North Slope. Sarah has always been proud to be an American. Michelle was never proud of America — until Barack started winning.

Now, who is the ‘us’ that Pat Buchanan is talking about, and who is the ‘them’? If it’s really about the democratic ticket and not about race, why is Joe Biden absent from this discussion?

Even if we weren’t talking about Pat Buchanan - a virulent racist whose response to Obama’s speech on race (referring to him as ‘Barack,’ but using last names for all the white people mentioned) was “It is the same old con, the same old shakedown that black hustlers have been running [for years]” and “White America needs to be heard from, not just lectured to” - it’s pretty clear who is meant by ‘them’ and ‘us.’

• A comparison of anti-trans arguments to anti-gay rhetoric at Fetch me my axe. Why all the stuff about trans issues? Because 1. I want it clear I do not believe that trans individuals or politics are a threat to feminism, and 2. those of us who are not anti-trans need to be vocally pro-trans.
• Nojojojo at the Angry Black Woman on POC on TV.
• Carnival against Sexual Violence 53, with links to posts on legal aspects, media, research, recovery, and other topics.
• Michelle Obama guest posts at BlogHer.
• Speaking of Obama…some dipshit produced shirts that said “Obama is my slave” is being sued by another dipshit who was surprised that black people were offended by it.
• On the lighter side, Pajiba finishes off a series on the greatest TV seasons of the last 20 years with Season 2 of The Office (US version).