ArtiFact: Books, Art, Culture

Woody Allen's "Crimes and Misdemeanors" deserves a second look not only for its frightening depiction of an otherwise "normal" killer, but also for how it masks an equally frightening comedy with dark humor. For example, Dolores (Anjelica Huston) is both a murder victim as well as a villain. Cliff Stern (Woody Allen) has noble aspirations but little talent. And Mia Farrow's character is gentle and...

Mariel Hemingway dominates "Manhattan" (1979) as she plays the role of Tracy -- Woody Allen's own projection. While "Manhattan" has become a controversial film due to the substantial age gap relationship (Woody Allen's character, Isaac, is 42, while Tracy is 17), this was not the case upon its release. Instead, it was universally praised and further cemented Woody Allen as a master of both drama a...

Woody Allen's "Hannah and Her Sisters" remains an undisputed classic in the director's filmography, yet just like "Manhattan", "Interiors," and "Annie Hall," it is often misunderstood. The film's ending, for example, is not what it appears to be, while Woody Allen's fixation on death masks an even darker fixation on the meaninglessness of his own life. In ArtiFact 71, the world's leading Woody All...

Woody Allen's "Interiors" is a poorly understood film, in part because it deals with artists and their foibles for a non-artistic audience. There are misunderstandings about Woody Allen's POV vs. the POV of his characters, misunderstandings about the nature of art and aesthetics, and even the role of cinematic influences on Allen, such as through Ingmar Bergman. In this episode of the ArtiFact Pod...

Turkey's Nuri Bilge Ceylan is our greatest living filmmaker, and 2011's "Once Upon A Time In Anatolia" is still his greatest film. Set deep in the heart of an ancient land, the film probes both myth and psychology in seamless fashion. In ArtiFact no. 69, filmmaker Alex Sheremet and critic Keith Jackewicz analyze the film in-depth. You can watch this discussion on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/w...

Derek Cianfrance's "Blue Valentine" (2010) remains one of the greatest and most realistic depictions of marriage on film. It eschews melodrama in favor of granularity, avoids the typical pitfalls of "relationship films," and probes both characters' psyches, ensuring that neither of them can avoid blame for the state of their marriage. Dean (Ryan Gosling) and Cindy (Michelle Williams) deliver great...

Stanley Kubrick's "Eyes Wide Shut" was never meant to be an erotic thriller, but a supreme glimpse into human psychology. Alice (Nicole Kidman) and Bill (Tom Cruise) are well-suited for each other's inner dreamscapes. In fact, the entire film should be seen as a kind of dream: from the improbable action, to the way that certain characters mirror one another, to the ways in which even fantasy is ul...

Alfonso Cuaron's "Children of Men" (2006) is enjoying a renaissance not only for its aesthetic qualities, but also its prescience. In the 2000s, overpopulation was still being discussed, and immigration wasn't the major topic. A post-racial America was declared, but ultimately dismissed. Taking place in 2027, "Children of Men" depicts refugees, fascism and domestic repression, a fertility crisis,...

The release of the Jeffrey Epstein files have further eroded the status quo. People all over the world have recognized the Epstein class is bipartisan, and we dissect the implications. You can also watch this discussion on our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B9sOo4z7s3A Subscribe to the ArtiFact podcast on Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3xw2M4D Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3wLpqEV...

Topics: discussing our upcoming film on Don Moss in Savannah, Georgia & Tybee Island; "Camera Work" photos curated by Alfred Stieglitz; adopting new cinematic techniques; Donald Trump, Elon Musk, & America's depression; Trump meme coins & the crypto grift; crypto removes the layers of fraudulent abstraction in Traditional Finance; how Trump could have avoided scamming his crypto follow...

Donald Trump's 2024 win surprised many pundits, but not Benjamin Studebaker, who had assumed the worldwide incumbency crisis in 2024 would ultimately come for Joe Biden and Kamala Harris. His newest book, "Legitimacy in Liberal Democracies", builds on his previous work on the chronic crisis of liberal democracy. In ArtiFact 64, Benjamin Studebaker and author/filmmaker Alex Sheremet discuss their r...

As soon as Joe Biden dropped out, Kamala Harris cinched the Democratic Party nomination. We assess Kamala Harris's uphill battle, and the extent to which Joe Biden condemned her to it. For example, why did Democrats hide Joe Biden's condition, even from themselves? What role will Biden's support for Israel's war crimes in Gaza play in 2024? We also assess Donald Trump's unique disadvantages, such...

Thaao Penghlis is a legendary actor who appeared on "Days Of Our Lives", "General Hospital", "Mission Impossible", and more. Yet he is also an intellectually curious person, and put together a mini-series on the archaeology of Homer's Greece. In ArtiFact 62, writer and filmmaker Alex Sheremet speaks with Thaao about Homer's "Iliad", the nature of cultural memory, and controversies surrounding Gree...

Author and filmmaker Alex Sheremet sits down with Erik Hill of Erik Hill Reviews  @erikhillreviews  to discuss all things art: the relationship between filmmaking and poetry, how the Harlem Renaissance and rap music changed Alex's life, the perils of Steven Pinker, and fresh insights into Alex Sheremet's and Joel Parrish's new film, "From There to There: Bruce Ario, the Minneapolis Poet". This dis...

Filmmaking can be highly technical, or not. As first-time director Alex Sheremet argues, finding the right topic and having an artistic blueprint in mind are far more important to master, as no amount of technical training will overcome bad ideas and artistic choices. Alex Sheremet and Joel Parrish sit down with Destin Davis of the Benton Courier to discuss their upcoming film, “From There to Ther...

Thomas Sowell has a reputation for unorthodox positions and intellectual chops, but does he deserve it? His comments on slavery, equality, freedom, and philosophical concepts are rather thin, while his claims about the public commons are hypocritical. In this video, authors and cultural critics Alex Sheremet and Dan Schneider go through some of Thomas Sowell's core beliefs, breaking down his logic...

Jared Taylor was born in Japan, traveled the world and became fluent in several languages, yet has wasted his life on white separatism. In this way, he extracted all the benefits of diversity—personal, professional, developmental—then decided to shut the door behind him. A longtime white supremacist, Jared Taylor nonetheless looks down on the vast majority of whites, telling Phil Donahue that he w...

Myths of Rome and the Orient, as well as questions of race and sexuality all play major roles in William Shakespeare’s underrated play, Antony and Cleopatra. It follows the final years of Roman triumvir Mark Antony and Egypt’s queen Cleopatra VII, as they engage in affairs, neglect their imperial duties, and wage war against Octavius Caesar (Augustus). In ArtiFact 57, authors Laura Woods, Alex She...

Bitcoin and cryptocurrency are a hotbed for right-wing ideologues, but Joshua Davila argues this technology is not going away and ought to be used for left-wing activism. Bitcoin, for example, is not inherently capitalistic, while projects on Ethereum and other protocols have been more exploratory and experimental. In ArtiFact 56, Alex and Josh discuss the concept of blockchain, why it’s valuable,...

Norman Maclean's "A River Runs Through It" is a great American novel, which is particularly shocking since it was Maclean’s first book and written in his 70s. In essence a memoir, “A River Runs Through It” follows the relationship between two brothers in 1930s Montana. Alex Sheremet and Keith Jackewicz dissect the book’s strengths, its powerful imagery and controlling metaphor(s), and unique struc...

The Hamas attack of October 7 was preceded by a number of escalations: ethnic cleansing in the West Bank and Jerusalem, Netanyahu’s threats to annex Palestine, encroachments into the Al Aqsa Mosque, the rise of the Lion’s Den movement and Unity Intifada, as well as Israeli-Arab normalization agreements (“Abraham Accords”) which excluded Palestinians. In ArtiFact 54, Middle East scholar Mouin Rabba...

In light of decolonization and postcolonial theory, William Shakespeare’s “The Tempest” has received new interest. Although Caliban is often thought of as the play’s centerpiece, Prospero remains its best-sketched character, as he has complex relationships and contradictory beliefs. His subjects, Ariel and Caliban, both demand freedom, while the stories told of their unnamed island are only second...

Loren Eiseley was a paleontologist more famed for his beautiful writing than for scientific discoveries, a fact that both oppressed and liberated him. In his book, “The Night Country”, Eiseley discusses his childhood exploring underground worlds and compares this with his work as a scientist and writer. He deals with questions such as “the ghost in the machine”, the purpose of civilization and (cu...

Now that Israel’s invasion of Gaza is center stage, Russia’s war in Ukraine is getting less attention. This has frustrated Zelensky in the midst of bad news. The Ukrainian counteroffensive has failed, and both Ukrainian and Western officials are wondering if negotiations should be the next step. This will require preparing the Ukrainian public for the possibility of a worse peace deal (and less la...

Although there’s often a desire for big, Hollywood films, having too many resources, and too much polish, contradicts the mission of art. Independent films can be shot with minimal equipment and lend themselves to bigger, bolder ideas in a smaller package. In ArtiFact 50, Alex Sheremet and Joel Parrish reflect on shooting their first film, “From There to There: Bruce Ario, The Minneapolis Poet”. T...