October 2016
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For literature? Here's one of many news stories on the announcement that are out this morning. Much as I love much of his work, I don't really think so. If there were a Nobel Prize for popular music, absolutely yes. But something called "literature" should be able to stand alone on the page, and I don't…
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Red for blood. Red for love. Red for the heart. Red for suffering. But not, in this film, for joy. The story is that long before he made Cries and Whispers in 1972, Bergman had “a vision of a large red room, with three women in white whispering together.” And that he wanted to know who…
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Something bad seems to have happened to it even as it was composing its comment. It's like those movie scenes where the killer catches up with someone just as he's phoning for help: Hello! This post could not be written any better! Reading through this post reminds me of my good abdaeefbeadcdaea I was initially flattered…
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Although it's a straightforward love song with no political, social, or religious content at all, the title of this song caught my eye as somehow appropriate to the political moment. In any case it's a nice '60s-girl-group kind of song. I discovered more or less by accident, while looking for a video for the song,…
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This is the thing I mentioned in the comments on an earlier post: a list of 125 or so people, active in either academia or punditry, who support Trump. I recognize maybe a quarter of the names. Of those, a fair number are people I respect–R.R. Reno of First Things, for instance. And I'm a little…
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When I read Zhang Yimou’s name, the first thing I think about is pageantry and majesty; Flying Daggers, and Red Lanterns; beautiful balletic battles and rich fabric; and color, color, color–and also poisonous family relationships, best exemplified in Curse of the Golden Flower. And then there are Zhang’s other movies: parochial, quiet, and filled with…
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A group of young politically-minded Catholics have set out to reform the nation with a combination of traditionalist faith and socialist politics. Here's their "Tradinista" manifesto. I wish them well. I really do, although in my opinion the socialist direction is the wrong way to go. I think that sort of movement would only further empower…
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I don't know if I would like this song as much if it weren't for those first two drum hits. You may not get it if you're not listening on a good system or with good headphones, but they're HUGE. Not really as huge in the YouTube sound as in the mp3, though.
Light On Dark Water 