Politics of Cinema Aaron & Isaac

On this episode we dive into one of Isaac's favorite films of the 2020's, Michael Sarnoski's Pig (2021). Sure, on the surface it's a simple story of a man who just wants his beloved pig back. But, as Robin and Amir journey through the Portland culinary scene to find said pig, the film explores what it means to live a life true to oneself, the importance of rejecting marketplace expectations, and finding authentic human connections.
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As we celebrate 3 years of the show, we decided to take a look at one of our favorite eras of American film - the 1970's. We're specifically looking at the Vietnam Anti-War Movement as captured by a fictional film and a documentary; Milestones (1975) and F.T.A. (1972).
On this episode we discuss Francine Parker's documenatry, F.T.A. (1972). Once again, we're also joined by special guest Jim Miller. As we celebrate Parker's film as well as Jane Fonda's career, Jim helps us to tie together alot of threads:
IPC Production Comany - from F.T.A. (1972) to Coming Home (1978) to 9 to 5 (1980) The Spitting Image: Myth, Memory and the Legacy of Vietnam by Jerry Lembcke The propaganda of the POW/MIA flag Jane Fonda's Workout Videos The Rambo film franchise In F.T.A., Parker's camera follows the 1971 anti-war, vaudville-style show as the performers entertain over 64,000 troops stationed in Okinawa, Japan, the Philippines, and Hawaii.
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As we celebrate 3 years of the show, we decided to take a look at one of our favorite eras of American film - the 1970's. We're specifically looking at the Vietnam Anti-War Movement as captured by a fictional film and a documentary; Milestones (1975) and F.T.A. (1972). 
On this episode we discuss Robert Kramer's experimental opus, Milestones, and are joined by special guest Jim Miller. Jim was an organizer during this period and provides key insights into just what was going on in that space at the same time Milestones is being made. Spoiler - the film is pretty accurate.
Robert Kramer has said that his films would one day add up to a whole. That all his films portray a "consciousness moving through time and place, trying to survive, trying to understand. The continuous process of becoming”. 
In Milestones we travel around American with 6 storylines and over 50 characters to survey the landscape of post-Vietnam anti-war activists. 
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Luis Buñuel was a master at creating lasting images that stay in the viewers brain long after the film is over. He had a career that spanned multiple decades and working in multiple countries, yet he consistantly took aim at political and social elites. 
In his 1962 masterpiece, The Exterminating Angel, the acclaimed filmmaker crafts an allegorical comedy that confronts the socio-political realities of Franco's Spain. Infused with a surrealistic touch and a substantial dose of satire, the film allows for a multi-layered interpretation.
Plus, it's just plain funny to watch the rich fall apart and destroy themselves. 
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On this episode, we're looking at two cinematic exampoles of the Palestinian expereince. One documentary and one fictionalized portrayal.
The documentary, Gaza Ghetto: Portrait of a Palestinian Family (1985), captures exactly what the title implies. We get the lived experiences from grandmother down to grandchildren as they recount their experiences ranging from the 1948 exile to the 1967 war to the 1971 “pacification campaign”. 
The fiction film is the very poorly titled, The Dupes (1973). It's an adaptation of Ghassan Kanafani's acclaimed book, Men in the Sun (1963). In this portrayal, three Palestinian men of different generations and and backgounds employ a fourth man to drive them past Iraqi checkpoints in hopes of getting to Kuwait and (hopefully) jobs. It's a fantastic example of realist cinema from Tawfiq Saleh, one of Egypts best filmmakers.
Links to things mentioned on the show:
The Accented Cinema book that Aaron discussed.
Solidarity Cinema
Palestine Film Institute.
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The fallout 2008 financial crisis has been portrayed on film in a number of ways; from documentary's like Iniside Job (2010) and Capitalism: A Love Story (2009) to ficiton films "inspired" by the events like The Big Short (2015) and Margin Call (2011). 
Andrew Dominik's Killing Them Softly (2012) takes a different approach. It starts with George V. Higgins' 1974 crime novel, itself the third in a series, that centers on a lower level crime syndicate in Boston. Then Dominik places that story in a 2008 New Orleans during the final weeks of the Obama/McCain presidential election. 
We get into the obvious metaphors that occur when organized crime is compared to financial institutions. But, we also end up discussing the various ways that Nationalism can manifest itself in America; from George W. Bush, to Obama, to Trump and Biden. 
We'll be dipping our toes back into this Systemic Risk topic, the intersection of the 2008 crisis and it's portrayal on film. So if you have any particularly intereseting examples to suggest (documentary or fiction), send them to politicsofcinema@gmail.com
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