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Cinema Purgatorio
Cultural criticsm and reviews. Enduring the torments of the IP era in hope of deliverance.

Latest

Dec
18
The End: Tried So Hard and Got So Far

The End: Tried So Hard and Got So Far

Joshua Oppenheimer's Tilda Swinton climate apocalypse musical isn't nearly as much fun as it should be, nor as arresting as his previous work.
11 min read
Dec
03
Tongues Untied: LGBTQ+ People Aren't Going Back

Tongues Untied: LGBTQ+ People Aren't Going Back

"End the silence, baby. We can make a serious revolution, together."
8 min read
Nov
20
Intercepted: Speak, Know Evil

Intercepted: Speak, Know Evil

A documentary of Russian soldiers' candid phone calls, premiering at a crucial turning point, prompts the question: when does news become history?
7 min read
Nov
12
Virginia Film Festival, Part 1: Day of Future Past

Virginia Film Festival, Part 1: Day of Future Past

My first of two days at the Virginia Film Festival, on the eve of the 2024 election, was full of movies grappling with historical trauma.
8 min read
Oct
30
Gone Girl at 10: Fifteen Minutes of Shame

Gone Girl at 10: Fifteen Minutes of Shame

A decade since its release, the date movie from hell is a post-breakup classic and a prophetic preview of the always-online life yet to come
8 min read
Oct
12
Jimmy Carter: Rock and Roll President: He's History's Greatest Rock Star

Jimmy Carter: Rock and Roll President: He's History's Greatest Rock Star

The story of Jimmy Carter's friendships with musical royalty illuminates, even as it hints at the limits of his approach.
5 min read
Sep
07
Alien: Romulus: The Cinemorph

Alien: Romulus: The Cinemorph

The first Disney-produced Alien film cares more about referencing the original movies than it does actual originality.
12 min read
Aug
24
Alien³: Scar Beast

Alien³: Scar Beast

The maligned threequel comes together often enough, and in such striking ways, that even its failures inspire fascination.
11 min read
Jul
22
Forrest Gump at 30: Defund, Forrest, Defund

Forrest Gump at 30: Defund, Forrest, Defund

Forrest Gump and the Neoliberal Imaginary in 1990s Welfare Reform. In this essay I will...
9 min read
Jul
04
Summer Solstice Screentime

Summer Solstice Screentime

I saw I Saw the TV Glow, finally, among other films in late June.
8 min read