The Film Doctor

"Why Trump Lost" by David Frum in The Atlantic

2026-05-24T11:58:59.032-04:00

From David Frum's "Why Trump Lost":

"Trump’s vision of the presidency is authoritarian and kleptocratic: Issue orders, grab money, luxuriate in flattery, erect monuments to oneself. That’s no way to lead a nation through the hazards and difficulties of war. Now the war is ending on disadvantageous terms for the United States. Trump’s old methods will be turned to a new task: trying to deceive the American people and the world into believing that the war he lost was really a big win, the biggest ever, so big you cannot believe it. He’s likely to discover that, indeed, nobody does believe it."

From Robert Kagan's "Checkmate in Iran":

"Defeat in the present confrontation with Iran will be of an entirely different character. It can neither be repaired nor ignored. There will be no return to the status quo ante, no ultimate American triumph that will undo or overcome the harm done. The Strait of Hormuz will not be “open,” as it once was. With control of the strait, Iran emerges as the key player in the region and one of the key players in the world. The roles of China and Russia, as Iran’s allies, are strengthened; the role of the United States, substantially diminished. Far from demonstrating American prowess, as supporters of the war have repeatedly claimed, the conflict has revealed an America that is unreliable and incapable of finishing what it started. That is going to set off a chain reaction around the world as friends and foes adjust to America’s failure."

Breakdown: 1975 trailer

2026-05-17T13:33:21.016-04:00

I found this documentary to be surprisingly enjoyable.

I Love Boosters trailer

2026-05-17T10:09:41.016-04:00

Here's Emily Nussbaum's profile of Boots Riley in The New Yorker.

The AI Doc: or How I Became an Apocaloptimist trailer

2026-05-11T19:37:00.000-04:00

Do We Know Each Other?

2026-04-19T14:51:00.001-04:00

Wickham Flannagan's "The TV Is Dreaming" video essay

2026-04-17T13:57:00.001-04:00

Wickham Flannagan's video essay "The TV Is Dreaming: Down the Rabbit Hole Documentation" explores the importance of rabbits in cinema for Literature/Film Quarterly.

Exit 8 trailer

2026-03-29T12:35:02.603-04:00

Talking with Michelle Pfeiffer for The New York Times

2026-03-10T14:12:00.000-04:00

From an interview with Michelle Pfeiffer:

"Pfeiffer feels good about these recent shows — as good as she allows herself to feel, at least. (And Kelley confirmed that so far their marriage has survived.) She has always disappeared into her roles, but this time, because she was going back and forth between projects and taking time out to visit her husband and her daughter and granddaughter, she couldn’t do her usual vanishing act. She doesn’t think the work has suffered.

“'If you’re going to survive, you’re going have to figure out a way to do this and enjoy your life and not disappear,' she said."

Talking with Ethan Hawke

2026-02-19T10:56:00.006-05:00

"The biggest difference is the way the canvas size has changed. There’s so much talk about whether a movie’s going to be bought for theatrical release or Netflix, or whether you could make this a limited series. And of course, the answer is always yes, all that is possible. I mean, take your favorite movies. Could we make “Casablanca” a limited series? I guess we could. Would it be better? I often feel like it’s just pouring water into beer and seeing how long it still gives you a little bit of a buzz."

--from Ethan Hawke's interview in The New York Times

The Devil Wears Prada 2 trailer

2026-02-04T10:24:00.007-05:00

Bruce Springsteen's "Streets of Minneapolis"

2026-01-30T07:21:00.001-05:00

From The Atlantic:

"The American dissidence, should it continue and grow, will need to look different from the resistance of months and years past. It will need to focus on what is common to all of us, what Havel called 'the aims of life.' We share many more of these aims than we sometimes realize. We may disagree about tax rates and foreign policy, gun rights and rent freezes, but 'normal' is a universal concept in America when it comes to what we expect for our children, our communities, and our sense of security and well-being. To be a dissident in this moment means moving beyond scoring points and underscoring differences, and on to recognizing what we are all losing—and blowing a whistle in order to prevent that loss.

Dissidence might seem to be a lonely act. It has always started that way. But what is called for now is the spirit of that man in Tiananmen Square, that immovable character, a human who insists on getting home to do the things that give his life purpose and will not let a few tanks get in his way."

Evan McGarvey's take on Pluribus

2025-12-17T13:14:00.001-05:00

I enjoyed Evan McGarvey's analysis of Pluribus, my favorite TV show of the moment.

One note about the otherwise very good Jay Kelly

2025-12-11T12:53:00.006-05:00

I enjoyed many aspects of Noah Baumbach's Jay Kelly, now out on Netflix. It was fun to see George Clooney suffer as a major movie star, and I liked the movie's main theme of the difficulty of being yourself. I just have one concern. Adam Sandler's character Ron is married to Greta Gerwig's character Lois. I do not think that Adam Sandler in fictional form or otherwise is worthy of being married to her under any circumstances. That is all.

Wickham Flannagan's "Parasite and the Ones Below"

2025-11-30T12:29:50.175-05:00

Here is Wickham Flannagan's video essay "Parasite and the Ones Below" in 16:9 Film Journal.

How to Make a Killing trailer

2025-11-29T15:33:00.011-05:00

It's hard to beat the brilliance of Kind Hearts and Coronets (1949):

Pluribus trailer

2025-11-12T12:57:00.000-05:00

By the by, I love this show.

The Devil Wears Prada 2 teaser

2025-11-12T12:52:00.005-05:00

How Marlon Brando Changed Acting by Nerdwriter1

2025-11-02T10:37:00.003-05:00

House of Guinness trailer

2025-10-05T20:42:00.006-04:00

Orwell: 2+2=5 trailer

2025-10-05T20:31:00.002-04:00

"The Fate of Ophelia" by Taylor Swift

2025-10-05T19:27:00.001-04:00

Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale trailer

2025-08-04T15:02:00.005-04:00

Bye Bye 25 by Kim Gordon

2025-06-15T13:00:00.002-04:00

Also, here's the article from The Atlantic where I learned about this version of the song.

Wednesday: Season 2 / First 6 Minutes

2025-06-02T19:24:00.001-04:00

Frankenstein trailer

2025-06-01T14:45:00.003-04:00