In the wake of widespread excitement for a live-action version of Lion King, Disney has been teasing the release of Guy Ritchie’s remake of Aladdin throughout the fall. Set to be released in May 2019, the film will bring to life the world of Agrabah, a faraway land of childhood dreams. As a child, the animated version of Aladdin (1992) was my first glimpse at cartoon characters that looked something like me and my family. At the time, I was overwhelmed to see a movie that depicted an Arab story, not yet aware of the movie’s many historical and cultural inaccuracies.
Pop Rhetoric
Where does ‘Roma’ belong?
With new streaming platforms appearing left and right, the battle for viewers’ attention has become increasingly diffuse. And with more and more content to sift through on a daily basis right from the comfort of one’s couch, the movie theatre’s centrality in the cultural zeitgeist has taken a major hit. It has become a major source of debate: As movies assimilate further into the household, studios will cater their projects to that kind of viewing experience.
Queering video games
My first encounter with a gay relationship was as a kid playing The Sims 2, when I selected the ‘flirt’ action for two male avatars. Taking caution to make sure that no one was watching my computer screen, I didn’t know what two boys ‘flirting’ even looked like. I thought[Read More…]
Gap-Toothed Women
In preparation for getting her braces on, my 13-year-old sister Noa recently met with her orthodontist for a consultation. The two agreed that she would have her braces on for about three years, that her elastics would be a neutral white instead of the bright pink and green for which[Read More…]
A response to RuPaul’s transphobic, sexist comments, and his empty apology
In an interview with the Guardian on March 3, RuPaul made it obvious that he does not want to let trans and cis women compete on Drag Race anytime soon. Rupaul’s Drag Race, which has been airing for nearly a decade, is a reality TV competition in which drag queens compete to[Read More…]
The Academy still hates women
There was a moving moment during the 90th Academy Awards where Ashley Judd, Salma Hayek, and Annabella Sciorra stood onstage to deliver a message. Their connection? All have accused Harvey Weinstein of sexual misconduct. In a year of watershed moments for transparency and accountability, the #MeToo and #TIMESUP movements have[Read More…]
Pop Dialectic: Is Mother! An inscrutable masterpiece? or regurgitated sexist hobgob?
mother! (2017) is a slamming punch to the face—a descent from taut, domestic psychodrama to full-throttle hermeneutic madness. In director Darren Aronofsky’s words, it is “a fever dream,” dabbling in feminism, filmmaking, and biblical allegory. While all of this could make for a truly impactful film, mother! instead flounders in a sea of[Read More…]
Pop Rhetoric: Selling horror
Three weekends into its theatre run, Andrés Muschietti’s It continued to lead the box-office with an impressive $29.8 million three-day total. Simultaneously, Darren Aronofsky’s mother! kept collecting dust with a meek $3.3 million in its second weekend despite strong TIFF word-of-mouth and Jennifer Lawrence’s star power. Both films are critically-acclaimed,[Read More…]
Pop Rhetoric: Taylor Swift is her own hot take
As soon as Taylor Swift deleted her Instagram account, her fans (known as “Swifties”) predictably anticipated a new album, which recently was revealed to be entitled Reputation, scheduled for release Nov. 10. Using social media stunts as teasers is commonplace among pop stars and cultural icons, but Swift’s release of[Read More…]
Pop Rhetoric: OKNOTOK is not what rock and roll needs right now
For all their talk about being so vehemently anti-capitalist, and–by proxy–true to their art, Radiohead loves a good gimmick. It was around this time last year, for example, just days before the release of their first album in seven years, that the British rock band effectively erased themselves from the[Read More…]
