Toni Morrison lecture at West Point Military Academy in March, 2013 / Wikimedia Commons. Toni Morrison has died at the age of 88. Since 1970, Morrison's novels have explored the African-American experience with both power and authenticity and have fiercely resisted the narrative of white dominant culture. Born in Ohio during the Great Depression, Morrison's […]
The 91st Academy Awards on February 24 will be the first Oscars in 30 years without a host – Kevin Hart stepped down after past homophobic tweets resurfaced. Indeed, Oscar never disappoints when it comes to controversy. One crisis averted: organizers had originally planned not to broadcast the Oscars for cinematography and editing live – […]
Celebrate Black History month by exploring North American feature films directed by African-American filmmakers across the decades working in a wide variety of cinematic styles and genres. The historical (and current) challenges faced by African-American filmmakers are rooted in racism, a theme integral to their cinema. Landmark barriers have been broken – more barriers still loom. […]
"Perfect" people in the title of recent books often prove to be anything but. Sinister rather than saintly, perfection in these gripping tales is often associated with psychopaths, stalkers, and murder most foul. Interestingly, many of these less-than-perfect subjects are female – with readers left to decide if this is a subtle critique about societal pressures […]
Photo Credit: Courtesy of Gage Skidmore. Stan Lee at the Phoenix ComicCon, 2014 Stan Lee, creator of Marvel comics, died on November 12, 2018 in California at the age of 95. His universe, populated by heroes and villains who were as flawed as they were fantastic, revolutionized the concept of what comic books could […]
Burt Reynolds 1936 – 2018 * Burt Reynolds, leading man and sex symbol with oodles of charm, was much more than a centerfold with a killer moustache. A talented actor with a great sense of comedic timing, Reynolds' wry wit and ironic presentation (somewhat) mitigated the hyper-masculinity of his 1970s male persona. He was […]
The Toronto International Film Festival is on from September 6 – 16. Torontonians are avid readers – and fierce filmgoers. Check out the best of both worlds with these great reads available at the Toronto Public Library – and a sneak peek at their film adaptations now premiering at TIFF. Updated: Creators of Three […]
Childish Gambino's "This is America" directed by Hiro Murai [heads up: includes graphic violence and disturbing scenes] On May 5, Donald Glover (aka Childish Gambino) released "This is America," now trending with upwards of 65 million views. This hypnotic, multi-layered project alternates between enthralling and shocking its viewers. Shifts in lighting, tone, and tempo emphasize (and distract […]
Medal designed by Erik Lindberg, Wikipedia Creative Commons The Swedish Academy has postponed the 2018 Nobel Prize for Literature amid shocking #MeToo allegations. The details have been widely covered in The New York Times, The Guardian, The Toronto Star and The New Yorker. Jean-Claude Arnault, a French photographer married to Nobel Prize judge Katarina Frostenson, has […]
Richard Rhodes, Pulitzer Prize-winning author and historian, prefers the term 'verity' over 'non-fiction.' "Why should an entire rich field of human endeavor — factual narrative — be defined by a negative?" He has a point. Here is a recommended list of new verity available at the Toronto Public Library. Heart Berries: A Memoir by Terese Marie […]