Translation As a Tool of Power: An Interview with Novelist R.F. Kuang
Award-winning author, translator, and academic R.F. Kuang’s newest novel, Babel, dives into the depths of deception wrought by colonialism, empire, and language.
John A. Riley
John A. Riley works at SolBridge International School of Business in Daejeon, South Korea, where he coordinates the school's liberal arts program, and also teaches drama and film studies. Since receiving his PhD in film studies from Birkbeck College, University of London, he has published articles and book chapters on the films of Andrei Tarkovsky and the revived Twin Peaks TV series. His book The Strickland Continuum, about the films of Peter Strickland, is due to be published in 2023. When not working he is involved in amateur theatre; his first play The End of the Pier Show was performed in Daejeon in June 2019.
The Bunkered Decades: Digging into the Atom Bomb’s Effect on Cold War America
When Americans realized the atom bomb their country created could be turned on them, arts and society alike bunkered down into nightmares of nuclear destruction.
A Movie for Your Ears? White Zombie’s ‘La Sexorcisto: Devil Music Volume One’ and Postmodern Collage
Thirty years ago, White Zombie’s La Sexorcisto: Devil Music Volume One reimagined metal in an era dominated by alternative rock.
David Bowie’s Danceable Assault on the Senses ‘Earthling’ Turns 25
Twenty-five years old today, David Bowie’s Earthling embodies multifaceted, sometimes contradictory currents of 1990s pop culture, including industrial metal and drum ‘n’ bass.
The Dizzying Montage of Fragments in Adam Curtis’ Excellent Docu-Series ‘Can’t Get You Out of My Head’
Adam Curtis’ Can’t Get You Out of My Head is an ambitious and, at times, overwhelming documentary series that charts the ‘emotional history of the modern world.’
A Motley Crew of Eccentric Characters Lurk in Sandi Tan’s ‘Lurkers’
A sprawling portrait of life in Los Angeles’ suburbs, Sandi Tan’s LURKERS is fascinating, funny and sometimes horrifying.
Author/Director Sandi Tan Discusses Exorcism and Other Battles in Her Art
Sandi Tan on how she battles demons and performs exorcisms in her new book, Lurkers, and elsewhere in her art.
Frank Zappa Documentary Unveils the Man Behind the Mythos
He may be known for going on some excellent adventures as one half of Bill & Ted, but Alex Winter is now several documentaries into his career. After years of sorting through rare archive footage, he's telling a story of Frank Zappa few thought possible.
Stanley Kubrick Biography Goes Beyond Rumors and Mystique
David Mikics casts Stanley Kubrick as a kind of modernist tragedian, showing how meticulous planning often gives way to vanity, error, or random chaos.
A Fresh Look at Free Will and Determinism in Terry Gilliam’s ’12 Monkeys’
Susanne Kord gets to the heart of the philosophical issues in Terry Gilliam's 1995 time-travel dystopia, 12 Monkeys.
‘Egress’ Mourns and Celebrates the Life and Work of Theorist Mark Fisher
Mark Fisher's insights are often obscured in Matt Colquhoun's personal/academic hybrid, Egress, which ranges far and wide over philosophy and pop culture.
The New Empire Has Risen: ‘New Kings of the World’
Author Fatima Bhutto profiles the new arbiters of mass culture: Bollywood, Dizi, and K-pop, in her engaging cultural studies/travelogue, New Kings of the World.