A few weeks back, I was chatting with my well-off, ardently Republican, impenetrably heterosexual nephew in his souped-up Land Rover. (Let’s call him Chad.) After picking me up at the Croton Falls train station and blathering on about the state of our kin, Chad changed topic and began insisting that…

Fortunately, once again, in fact for the 22nd time, NYAFF is supplying a solid, cultural one-two punch to the jaw of rampant bigotry against Asians, American and otherwise. With over 70 offerings, including eight world premieres, from 15 countries including Singapore, Thailand, and Malaysia, voices seldom reaching our shores, except…

Have you ever wondered why you and your compatriots worldwide are so obsessed with entertainment big and small? Pauline Kael in “Trash, Art, and the Movies” supplied one possibility: “Maybe you just want to look at people…

This past week was the 22nd year that Cinecittà and Film at Lincoln Center showcased the descendants of Fellini, Pasolini, and Antonioni. Yes, each year “Open Roads: New Italian Cinema” spotlights the best or most promising works of contemporary filmmakers from the Boot: a reflection of sorts to what’s occurring…

Jerk clearly is in the running for the most disturbing feature presented at the recent Los Angeles-based Film Maudit 2.0, one of the more important alternative arts festivals in the country. (It ended February 12th.) For the context of this verdict, imagine you saw some of the fest’s other offerings…

The Los Angeles-based Film Maudit 2.0 began on January 12th and suddenly refuses to end until February 12th. I’m sorry. Some good things just can’t be stopped. If you try, it might run until February 13th. Now, for those of you not on the West Coast who can’t get your…

It’s hard being a Jew nowadays. “When was it ever easy?” you might ask. “But in New York City?” Yup, not for all the shekels in Tel Aviv would I now enter a subway car with a yarmulke on my head. I wouldn’t even sport a tallit outside Bloomingdale’s. This…

Where’s Peter Sellers when you need him? “Passed away,” you say? Oh, that’s a shame. “Why?” you ask. Clearly . . . indubitably. . . without a doubt, his Inspector Jacques Clouseau could have salvaged what’s wound up on the screen as Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery. Try…

“Pigeons in the grass alas.” — Gertrude Stein The theatergoers in their damp black jackets and overcoats with their black, automatic open-and-close umbrellas in hand were grouping in twos and threes on the second-floor lobby of LaMaMa on East 4th Street. Not a red or yellow in sight, not even on a scarf or beanie. Admittedly, some blue…