If We Shadows Have Offended: I read “If We Were Villains”

Last updated on: June 1, 2017 at 11:37 am By Eve Tushnet

So you don’t have to! No, this trashy novel by M.L. Rio, set at an exclusive arts conservatory where the Shakespeare-obsessed fourth-year students probably kill a dude, could be cheaply summarized as, “The Secret History, but dumb.” That’s not even necessarily a criticism–lots of smart books are painfully dumb, and some dumb books are unexpectedly smart. I found myself enjoying this book and finding unexpected pleasures in it. It’s frustrating and I think for most readers its flaws will–understandably–overwhelm its... Read more

“It Was the End of Solo Singing”: I revisit a monarchist’s epic about the Spanish Civil War

Last updated on: May 31, 2017 at 1:36 pm By Eve Tushnet

for the University Bookman: When Eric Hobsbawm suggested that the period 1914–1991 could be called “the short twentieth century,” he not only defined an era but separated it from our own. Few conflicts are as emblematic of that final modern century than the Spanish Civil War; the familiar English-language writings on the war can seem remote from us, Orwell and Hemingway. If you want to see what’s only too contemporary in the Spanish clash of ideologies, turn to a novel... Read more

Maybe Stop Seeking?

Last updated on: April 26, 2017 at 10:22 am By Eve Tushnet

“A short story says, ‘I looked for x, and didn’t find it,’ or, ‘I was not looking anymore, and then I found x.’ A novel says, ‘I looked for x, and found a, b, c, g, q, r, and w.’” -Etif Batuman So yesterday I suggested that you maybe try a thing. Now I want to suggest that you maybe should stop trying things. I’m a cornucopia of contradiction over here. There’s a lot of narrative pressure to view our... Read more

In Your Eyes I See the Doorways to a Thousand Churches

Last updated on: April 25, 2017 at 6:11 pm By Eve Tushnet

One of the moments that stood out to me at that Calvin College “Faith & Writing” conference last year was James K.A. Smith’s line that “the discipline and regimen of historic Christian worship… [plies] and stretch[es] your imagination.” I’ve been thinking about the ways gay Christians are damaged by the “liturgies” of our surrounding culture–and by the absence of images, practices, forms of prayer which could teach us to see better. There’s a pretty obvious commercial anti-liturgy in which bodies... Read more

What If We Remade “I Confess”… But Sleazy?: And more movie notes

Last updated on: April 25, 2017 at 1:15 am By Eve Tushnet

Wow, guys, this is a lot. Strap in. A Cottage on Dartmoor: British silent revenge flick; very grabby with the intercutting and the emotional intensity; ends with quite poignant scene of forgiveness. Forgiveness, rather than reunion, as the climax of a love story. Laura: Noir (although the noir style mostly doesn’t kick in until late) and mostly standard, although I liked how pleasant and undefensive the career-woman scenes were. There’s a specific kind of relationship here, the man who mentors... Read more

A Coptic Priest’s Message to Those Who Kill Christians: “Thank You!”

Last updated on: April 12, 2017 at 1:24 pm By Eve Tushnet

incredibly powerful: The first thing we will say is “Thank you very, very much,” and you won’t believe us when we say it. You know why we thank you? I’ll tell you. You won’t get it, but please believe us. You gave us to die the same death as Christ–and this is the biggest honor we could have. Christ was crucified–and this is our faith. He died and was slaughtered–and this is our faith. You gave us, and you gave... Read more

“The Long Years After Failure”: I review “After the Storm”

Last updated on: April 7, 2017 at 11:32 am By Eve Tushnet

at AmCon: After the Storm, the latest film from writer-director Hirokazu Koreeda (Maborosi, Nobody Knows), opens with a discussion of the 1972 Winter Olympics in Sapporo, where U.S. figure skater Janet Lynn fell during her free skate, came up smiling, and won the hearts of the Japanese audience. Forty-five years later the reaction of elderly Yoshiko (Kirin Kiki), the mother of Storm’s central character, is very different. “She fell on her butt and got a perfect score,” Kiki grouses. “It... Read more

Moving Pictures from an Institution: Movie notes

Last updated on: March 31, 2017 at 12:08 pm By Eve Tushnet

Four films linked by a really depressing theme! Scum: Our institution: a 1970s Borstal (juvenile prison). Does exactly what it says on the tin, not quite two hours of violence and contempt. The use of rules as abuse, creating impossible demands (guard throws a prisoner back into his cell, spilling the guy’s mug of soup, then snaps: “Dirty cell, you’re on report”); use of prisoners’ self-created hierarchies to divide and conquer. The scenes where suicidal prisoners are mocked and beaten... Read more

Thirty-Eight Films (Favorite Movies from Each Year of My Life)

Last updated on: March 30, 2017 at 3:48 pm By Eve Tushnet

I’ve found these exercises so fascinating. Other people’s lists have made me reconsider movies I’d decided not to investigate (should I watch Motel Hell???) and notice my own tastes: When you force me to choose, I often pick horror, comedy-horror, and children’s movies, and I very frequently rank stories about girls and women higher than my guy film fan friends. Neither of which are claims of aesthetic superiority. But hey, if I throw my list out there, maybe those patterns... Read more

Mourning and Weeping in this Valley of Brunch

Last updated on: March 29, 2017 at 12:35 pm By Eve Tushnet

Last week I did a speaking engagement in New York, on the topic, “Christianity Is the Most Materialistic of Religions.” I did not choose this topic (BOOK ME, I WILL ROLL WITH WHATEVER WEIRD-ASS THING) and one theme that emerged from my unusually rambling performance was that Christianity cherishes and celebrates the body, but not in the way you might like. You can watch the videos here (in three parts, so check the order)–seriously, I always ramble and get tangled... Read more