Politics of Cinema

For the last three years we've observed the month long celebration know as Noirvember, and this year is no exception. In 2021 we recorded an episode called Film Noir & Capitalism. For 2022 we went over to Japan and did two episodes looking at Yakuza Noir via Tokyo Drifter (1966) and A Colt is My Passport (1967). Last year we focused in on Neo-Noir with and episode on Killing them Softly (2012) and the roll of the 2008 economic crisis on modern American crime.

This year, we're returning to the well of Film Noir & Capitalism by discussing Abraham Polonsky's Force of Evil (1948). Written and directed by an eventual victim of the Hollywood Blacklist, this film perfectly encapulate Polonky's own statement that "all films about crime are about capitalism, because capitalism is about crime".

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It's our 100th episode and to celebrate we're doing something a little different. This is a syncable commentary of one of the films that inspired this podcast - Boots Riley's Sorry to Bother You (2018).

Sync up this episode with the film to watch along and hang out with us while we geek out over this brilliant directorial debut and biting social satire.

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American cinema of the 1970's is generally known as the golden age of the paranoid thirller. Specifically, the paranoid political thriller. The genearl idealism of the 1960's was met with increasing cynicism by the 1970's, but do these films actually go for the politics of the era or are they just dealing with vibes?

In this episode, we focus on two films of the era; The Parallax View (1974) and Good Guys Wear Black (1978). Is it possible that an early Chuck Norris film has more to say about American politics than a Warren Beatty film that was made during the Watergate hearings?

We also briefly discuss a number of other films from the era, just to see if they're providing vibes or real content. Films discussed include; The Day of the Jackel (1973), The Spook Who Sat By The Door (1973) [see our previous episode], Marathon Man (1976), All the President's Men (1976), Three Days of the Condor (1975), The Domino Principle (1977), The China Syndrome (1979), and Cutters Way (1981).

This era also saw a proliferation of Biker films after the box office success of Easy Rider (1969). Two that we discuss because of their Vietnam War connection are The Losers (1970) and Brotherhood of Death (1976).

We also discuss two European examples just to see how the comparison works; Revolver (1973) and The Assassination (1972).

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On this episode, we wrap up our summer series looking at American Urban Landscapes on film with a Double Feature episode. We each bring a few titles that exemplify this theme and then put together a Double Feature (or two...or three) for the listeners.

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We're celebrating May Day all month long by looking at various portrayals of workers on film. On this episode Isaac has chosen How Green Was My Valley (1941) and Aaron has chosen Empire Records (1995).

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