arts and culture
John Brown’s maid: Brown as buffoon in ‘The Good Lord Bird’ vs. Brown as radical in ‘Underground’
December 7, 2020The last two episodes of Ethan Hawkes' recounting of the John Brown story have some emotional resonance.
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How capitalism underdeveloped Appalachia: The economic truth ‘Hillbilly Elegy’ ignores
December 1, 2020It’s a tough trip for J.D. Vance and the viewer, but as the ride bumps along, it stays safely above the larger issues that actually shape the afflictions of Appalachia.
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5G and ‘Biohackers’: Technology rules! (Is that a good thing?)
November 30, 2020What could go wrong? Plenty, say 5G critics in France.
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‘Lovecraft Country’: Liberating 1950s apartheid America one monster at a time
November 20, 2020It’s now a done deal with the series already out in its entirety, but the best pilot and one of the best shows of the year is HBO’s Lovecraft Country.
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‘Accused’: Finnish composer tackles political interrogations from France, GDR and USA
November 18, 2020Living in a firmly established social democracy, Finnish composer Magnus Lindberg probably doesn’t hear very often about political interrogations in his own country, but the subject obviously interests him.
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