Tag Archives: Jean-Luc Godard

war and conflict: those pauses that refresh

Its the ultimate kitsch product. Coke. All style and form. No substance. Something with multiple layers of meaning exposing a vast fictionality of the object situated in a space between reality and illusion. Kitsch. Both imitative and its negation, kitsch … Continue reading

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jerry as a jerrie: clowning in the shower

…Despite all efforts of the prosecution everybody could see that this man was not a monster, but it was difficult not to suspect that he was not a clown. ( Arendt, Eichmann in Jerusalem ) Written at the same time … Continue reading

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generic pop and the bushmen: blues for allah

If Nelly Furtado, Mariah Carey and Usher can perform for Gaddafi at the late clans family gatherings under the big tent, then what about ambitious kidnappers from the backwoods of Nigeria…. From the Globe and Mail: Canadian diplomat knew his … Continue reading

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fizzy warbles: an arm’s reach of desire

The marketing double-cross.New coke, old tactics. Obesity and the bottom line. The belching monster. The twisted veracity of the plausible. The taste test of corporate integrity. Cuddly polar bears- just by coincidence they are white, predatory and live in the … Continue reading

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dislocation : journals of the anti-saint

Disturbing. Jean Genet is Downright terrifying. A dark star. A solitude and shimmering of a black star. …Outside select literary circles, Genet is today an almost-forgotten writer, so it’s probably appropriate not only to consider the “last Genet,” but also … Continue reading

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recycle the ideal: chasing the “it”

Certainly Coke would not be the global brand it is without the Americanization of the global psyche.Coke is it. An artificial unfulfilled promise. After all, the product of the Coca Cola company is advertising and its creation of desire. “Coca … Continue reading

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watering the weeds

The Stavisky scandal. One mans contradictory relationship with truth and death. Yes, the big crooks live on; greedy and cold they get to get swindled another day. Stavisky stood off attacks from the press with bribes, which he called “watering … Continue reading

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$$$ from pigale to palace: origins of the hustle

There is always a fascination with the role of the past and how quickly it fades into oblivion. The actors and contexts may change, but there is always an unseen hand, proffering the levers that mechanically set in motion the … Continue reading

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8 1/2 disruptions of syntax

In Fellini’s 8 1/2 an intellectual laments that the director, Guido, has no central idea, no clear intellectual concept. An English journalist wedges in,”What do you think about the marriage of Marxism and Catholicism?” In 8 1/2  Fellini doesn’t just … Continue reading

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VIRIDIANA & NEW WORDLY IMPULSES: Free and Imprisoned Old Sicknesses

Luis Bunuel tells us that the comfortable man ( or woman ) , self-concerned, attempting to embrace more comfort, bores us stiff. And what Bunuel is telling us in cinema is what De Tocqueville forecast in “Democracy in America” . … Continue reading

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