«
»
ReelPolitik
A blog about film and politics, and the politics of filmmaking.
Anthony Kaufman is a film journalist and critic, who has written for the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, the Chicago Tribune, the Village Voice and Slate, and contributes regularly to Variety, indieWIRE, the Wall Street Journal Online and the Utne Reader.
[Email Me]
Articles
- "Piracy May Be an Indie Filmmaker's Best Friend" (Indiewire, October 2011
- "The Decline of Indies on Netflix" (indieWIRE, Sept, 2011)
- "Secretariat" Isn't Hollywood's Only Secretly Conservative Blockbuster" (IFC News, October 2010)
- "Absurdistan: The New Iraq War Cinema" (Village Voice, April 2008)
- "Is Foreign Film The New Endangered Species?" (New York Times, January 2006)
ReelPolitik
Lefty Filmmakers Grapple with Left-Wing Backlash
- By Anthony Kaufman
- |
- June 12, 2013 1:28 PM
- |
- 4 Comments
The left-wing sectarian debates fuming over Alex Gibney's "We Steal Secrets: The Story of Wikileaks," well-assembled and dissected by Andrew O'Hehir at Salon.com, is also taking place around "Pandora's Promise," Robert Stone's equally controversial and reasonably argued film about the benefits of nuclear power. Jeremy Scahill has also said he's receiving more hate-mail from liberals because of his criticisms of Obama in "Dirty Wars." Why so little love?
"Dirty Wars" Attacks Obama as Foreign Policy Debate Heats Up
- By Anthony Kaufman
- |
- June 5, 2013 9:55 AM
- |
- 0 Comments
In a perfect world, one might believe that President Obama's recent foreign policy speeches, calling for an end to "America's perpetual wartime footing" and reopening the debate on the use of drones, came in response to the imminent release of Richard Rowley's timely doc "Dirty Wars," which is opening Friday and explicitly addresses these issues. Do documentaries have that much power? Probably not, but "Dirty Wars" couldn't have arrived at a better time.
Why Indie Films Must Resist Hollywood
- By Anthony Kaufman
- |
- June 4, 2013 11:06 AM
- |
- 0 Comments
Back in the year 2007, the independent film world was in the grips of its new-found ascendancy, with huge successes like "Juno," "No Country for Old Men," "Atonement," and 2006's "Little Miss Sunshine." Just prior to its imminent collapse in 2008, the sky didn't seem to be falling; on the contrary, for Indiewood, the sky seemed to be the limit. It was at that time that I wrote a piece called "Why Indie Films Must Resist Hollywood" (at FilmCatcher.com, long defunct, which I recently found again in the vaults of the Internet Archive's WayBackMachine). I wanted to re-post the story, not only to reiterate its message, but also to suggest how some of its argument may be outdated.
A Breakout Year for Black Film? Not Quite.
- By Anthony Kaufman
- |
- June 3, 2013 9:23 AM
- |
- 4 Comments
After chronicling the struggles of black independent filmmakers to get their movies made recently, in stories for Filmmaker Magazine and this blog, I was surprised to read New York Times reporter Michael Cieply's overly upbeat take on what he calls a "substantial new wave" of African American themed films, which seems to me like an irresponsible and overly rosy characterization of the number of black films in the U.S. marketplace.
5 Reasons Indies are Better than Hollywood Films
- By Anthony Kaufman
- |
- May 31, 2013 2:20 PM
- |
- 2 Comments
Thanks again to the Internet Archive's WayBack Machine, I am reposting an old story that remains just as relevant today: the first of what was to be a series of articles called "5 Reasons Indie Films Are Better than Hollywood Film" (which had evaporated along with its now defunct home, FilmCatcher.com). Published in 2007, some of the examples may seem a little out-dated (do people still remember Maggie Gyllenhaal's debut?) but the sentiment still remains powerfully relevant. My first reason is below. Since reasons 2-5 were never written, I'm taking suggestions in the comments section. Herewith, the first reason:
"American Arab": Racism in the Post-9/11 Age
- By Anthony Kaufman
- |
- May 31, 2013 10:21 AM
- |
- 0 Comments
From documentary powerhouse Kartemquin Films comes the news that Usama Alshaibi's new documentary "American Arab" is nearing completion, readying for festival screenings in late 2013 and 2014, which could mean a Toronto premiere or a fall regional fest appearance. I got to know Alshaibi's work when I profiled him for the Creative Capital Foundation a few years back. His 2006 doc "Nice Bombs" offered a refreshing new perspective on Iraq War, allowing Westerners to sympathize with an Arab perspective in a much deeper way. "American Arab" promises to do the same.
Against the Future of Film-Viewing: There is No Such Thing as Small Movies
- By Anthony Kaufman
- |
- May 30, 2013 12:59 PM
- |
- 0 Comments
Thanks to Web.Archive.org's Wayback Machine, here is an article that never goes out of style, as indie filmmakers continue to seek online and other digital distribution avenues to release their movies: "Against the Future of Cinema: There is No Such Thing as Small Movies," originally published in 2008 at FilmCatcher.com.
Where are the second films from the directors of "Pariah" and "Medicine for Melancholy"?
- By Anthony Kaufman
- |
- May 30, 2013 9:34 AM
- |
- 3 Comments
hey are among the most lauded young filmmakers to come out of the independent movie scene, but Dee Rees, the director of "Pariah" (2011) and Barry Jenkins, who made "Medicine for Melancholy" (2008), have not made follow-up features. Why? The reasons are numerous--with even institutional racism a possibility--and while the two have multiple projects in development, the fact is: No second feature.
Political Pics on Khmer Rouge and Palestinian Occupation Win Cannes Prizes
- By Anthony Kaufman
- |
- May 25, 2013 4:27 PM
- |
- 0 Comments
It's not the first time a documentary has won a top prize in Cannes -- Michael Moore's "Fahrenheit 9/11" paved the way in 2004 -- but it's still a rare day in France when nonfiction takes center stage. On Saturday, the awards in the Un Certain Regard sidebar were handed out, with Cambodian filmmaker Rithy Panh's "A Missing Picture," about Cambodia's nightmarish 1970s dictatorship, winning top honors. The runner-up prize went to Palestinian born "Paradise Now" director Hany Abu-Assad's latest "Omar."
Rasoulof's "Manuscripts" Flouts Iranian Censors, Invites Controversy
- By Anthony Kaufman
- |
- May 24, 2013 2:02 PM
- |
- 0 Comments
Iranian filmmaker Mohammad Rasoulof, who has been sentenced to a single year in jail by authorities in his home country, unveiled his latest movie in Cannes, "Manuscripts Don't Burn" yesterday; and it promises to only make matters more difficult for the courageous filmmaker. Like fellow Iranian director Jafar Panahi, who has been banned from making movies and sentenced to a longer prison term, the country's Judicial punishments appear to have done little to dampen their creative and activist spirits.
Recent Comments
Just stumbled on your article. As an Iranian and a filmmaker, I appreciate your insight into
Of course, because don't we want all our movies to be politically correct and focus-group
That's a fascinating take on the subject, Harry Harrison. And thank you for pointing out that
Ah, Harry, it's funny how certain internet types reduce everything to "moron",
FACTOID: "Similarly, what qualifies Gibney to tackle wikileaks?" Um, mr. factoid, using
Documentary filmmaking, particularly of the type likely to turn up at major festivals and be
The music industry renders your argument moot: the other 86% of the population is overwhelmingly
A close friend of mine works at ITVS. I can tell you that it is a secretive place where the managers
I knew this would be more political oriented. And that's why Pitt signed onto the project. So
I haven't seen the movie yet, but I did see Moulin Rouge. I thoroughly enjoyed it, but not