Can anyone remember what happened in May?
May 2nd
— Copycat (1994)
Directed by Jon Amiel; screenplay written by Ann Biderman and David Madsen.
Starring Sigourney Weaver, Holly Hunter, Dermot Mulroney, William McNamara, Harry Connick Jr., Will Patton, J. E. Freeman & John Rothman.
Premiered in Los Angeles on October 19, 1995; theatrically released in the United States by Warner Bros. on October 27, 1995.
A mediocre thriller celebrating the culture of serial killers. Perhaps the most interesting feature of this film is the representation of digital culture. When this film was released there was not really much of an internet — everything happened in the years that followed at such an incredible pace that this film’s representation of the powers of a personal computer seemed realistic, if crude, whereas the truth was that most computers didn’t have the power to even view videos or even complicated animations until the early 00s. Everything was textual. But text does not film well.
May 4th
— Rosalind Krauss, “Grids”
— Finished Maj Sjöwall and Per Wahlöö, Man Who Went Up In Smoke
— Strange Days (1995)
Directed by Kathryn Bigelow; screenplay written by James Cameron and Jay Cocks, from a story by James Cameron.
Starring Ralph Fiennes, Angela Bassett, Juliette Lewis, Tom Sizemore, Michael Wincott, Vincent D’Onofrio, Glenn Plummer, and Brigitte Bako.
Premiered at the Venice Film Festival on September 3, 1995; released in the United States on October 13, 1995.
These films trying to think the near future are sort of funny. This film, in particular, thinking the coincidence of drug and virtual reality culture. Ralph Fiennes as a sort of lowlife is unthinkable, so burnished is his star in Hollywood (and for good reason). And it’s more curious how Juliette Lewis managed these roles. I lived through this period and never understood the appeal she produced: Kalifornia, What’s Eating Gilbert Grape, Natural Born Killers [that one stings, in particular], etc.
— NYRB on Woven Histories
May 5th
— NYRB on Vitruvius
May 7th
— Andor (2022-25)
Starring Diego Luna, Stellan Skarsgård, Genevieve O’Reilly, and Denise Gough.
Episode 2.6 “What a Festive Evening,”
Directed by Ariel Kleiman; written by Beau Willimon and Tony Gilroy.
aired April 29, 2025.
2.7 “Messenger,”
Directed by Janus Metz; written by Dan Gilroy and Tony Gilroy.
Aired May 6, 2025.
2.8 “Who Are You?,”
Directed by Janus Metz; written by Dan Gilroy and Tony Gilroy.
Aired May 6, 2025.
This episode records the “rebellion,” which the viewer knows has been instigated by the Empire — a false flag operation, if you will. But the rebels, so provoked, are real and the deaths are real. In particular, the death of the character Syril Karn (Kyle Soller), whom we have followed since the first season as a young and ambitious Imperial cog striving continuously to do his duty. In this episode he meets an undignified end, realizing that he has manufactured a rebellion to lead to the slaughter of hundreds of innocents.
2.9 “Welcome to the Rebellion” (aired May 6, 2025)
Directed by Janus Metz; written by Dan Gilroy and Tony Gilroy.
Aired May 6, 2025.
May 8-9th
— Curzio Malaparte, The Skin, 10 pp.
— Gladiator (2000)
Directed by Ridley Scott; screenplay written by David Franzoni, John Logan, and William Nicholson; story by David Franzoni.
Starring Russell Crowe, Joaquin Phoenix, Connie Nielsen, Oliver Reed, Derek Jacobi, Djimon Hounsou, Richard Harris, and Tommy Flanagan.
Premiered in Los Angeles on May 1, 2000; released in the United States and United Kingdom on May 5, 2000.
Meh. I believe the sequel was released about this time? Does anyone care?
— Maj Sjöwall and Per Wahlöö, Abominable Man, 10 pp.
May 10th
— Hacksaw Ridge (2016)
Directed by Mel Gibson; screenplay written by Robert Schenkkan and Andrew Knight, based on the true story of Desmond Doss.
Starring Andrew Garfield, Sam Worthington, Luke Bracey, Teresa Palmer, Hugo Weaving, Rachel Griffiths, Vince Vaughn, and Richard Roxburgh.
Premiered at the Venice Film Festival on September 4, 2016; released in the United States on November 4, 2016.
Perhaps a little saccharine, but mostly an impressive story of genuine heroism.
— NRYB on the Frick renovation, Claire Messud’s latest novel, and measles
— Abominable Man, 25 pp.
May 11th
— NYRB on Belle de Costa Greene
— Light & Magic (2022–present), Episode 1 “Gang of Outsiders”
Directed by Lawrence Kasdan; written by Lawrence Kasdan and others.
Starring George Lucas, Steven Spielberg, Ron Howard, John Dykstra, Dennis Muren, Phil Tippett, and other ILM pioneers featured in interviews.
Premiered on Disney+ on July 27, 2022, with all six Season 1 episodes debuting simultaneously
May 13th
— Andor (2022-25)
2.10 “Make It Stop”
Directed by Alonso Ruizpalacios; written by Tom Bissell and Tony Gilroy.
Starring Stellan Skarsgård, Elizabeth Dulau, Robert Emms, Anton Lesser, Jacob James Beswick, Michael Jenn, Caoilfhionn Dunne, and April V Woods.
— Light & Magic (2022)
1.2 “On the Bucking Bronco”
Directed by Lawrence Kasdan; written by Lawrence Kasdan and others.
Starring George Lucas, Steven Spielberg, Francis Ford Coppola, and Marcia Lucas.
Premiered on Disney+ on July 27, 2022, with all six Season 1 episodes debuting simultaneously.
— Finished The Abominable Man
May 14th
— Andor (2022-25)
2.11 “Who Else Knows?” and 2.12 “Jedha, Kyber, Erso”
Directed by Alonso Ruizpalacios; written by Tom Bissell and Tony Gilroy.
Starring Diego Luna, Stellan Skarsgård, Genevieve O’Reilly, Denise Gough, Alan Tudyk, Elizabeth Dulau, Jacob James Beswick, and Richard Sammel.
Released on Disney+ on May 13, 2025, as part of the final three-episode block concluding Season 2.
If you’ve been following this and know where everything falls into place, then you know that we are set just at the beginning of Rogue One, the need for verification of these rumors of a new Imperial weapon, the death star.
And now you know that the hero of that film hadn’t wanted to be one, that he continued his work although intending to end it and to become a father and husband. Only to be abandoned by the mother of his child when she learned of his intentions.
Again, I think that this so dramatically changes even Rogue One, just as Rogue One changed the meaning of Star Wars Chapter IV: A New Hope.
May 15th
— Light & Magic (2022), Episode 1.4 “I Think I Found My People” (2022‑07‑27)
Directed by Lawrence Kasdan; written by Lawrence Kasdan and others.
Starring George Lucas, Steven Spielberg, Ron Howard, John Dykstra, Dennis Muren, Phil Tippett, Richard Edlund, Ken Ralston, Lorne Peterson, Joe Johnston, and Rose Duignan.
Premiered on Disney+ on July 27, 2022, with all six Season 1 episodes debuting simultaneously.
May 17-18th
— The Skin, 20 pp.
— Light & Magic (2025)
Episodes 2.1 “Are We Ready for This?” and 2.2 “There Must Be a Better Way”
Directed by Joe Johnston; written by Joe Johnston and others.
Starring Rob Coleman, George Lucas, Joe Johnston, and Ahmed Best.
Premiered on Disney+ on April 18, 2025, as part of Season 2’s release.
May 19th
— Top of the Lake (2013)
Season 1, Episode 1: “Paradise Sold”
Directed by Jane Campion; written by Jane Campion and Gerard Lee.
Starring Elisabeth Moss, Peter Mullan, David Wenham, Alice Englert, and Thomas M. Wright.
Premiered on SundanceTV on March 18, 2013.
Season 1, Episode 2: “Searchers Search”
Directed by Garth Davis; written by Jane Campion and Gerard Lee.
Starring Elisabeth Moss, Peter Mullan, David Wenham, Alice Englert, and Thomas M. Wright.
Premiered on SundanceTV on March 18, 2013.
— Maj Sjöwall and Per Wahlöö, Cop Killer, 50 pp.
May 20th
— Top of the Lake (2013)
Season 1, Episode 3: “The Edge of the Universe”
Directed by Garth Davis; written by Jane Campion and Gerard Lee.
Starring Elisabeth Moss, Peter Mullan, David Wenham, Thomas M. Wright, Holly Hunter, and Lucy Lawless.
Premiered on SundanceTV on March 25, 2013.
— Cop Killer, 15 pp.
May 23rd
— Finished Cop Killer
— Law & Order (1990–2010)
Season 6, Episode 17: “Deceit” (aired March 27, 1996)
Directed by Constantine Makris; written by Barry M. Schkolnick.
Starring Jerry Orbach, Benjamin Bratt, S. Epatha Merkerson, Sam Waterston, Jill Hennessy, and Steven Hill.
— Law & Order (1990–2010)
Season 6, Episode 14: “Custody” (aired February 21, 1996)
Directed by Jace Alexander; written by Barry M. Schkolnick.
Starring Jerry Orbach, Benjamin Bratt, S. Epatha Merkerson, Sam Waterston, Jill Hennessy, and Steven Hill.
May 24th
— Top of the Lake (2013)
Season 1, Episode 4: “A Rainbow Above Us”
Directed by Garth Davis; written by Jane Campion and Gerard Lee.
Starring Elisabeth Moss, David Wenham, Peter Mullan, Thomas M. Wright, and Holly Hunter.
Premiered on SundanceTV on April 1, 2013.
— NYRB on making capitalism brutal again, Dunya Mikhail’s poetry of witness, the carelessness of the FB C-suite, conspirituality, and zionism without zion
— Law & Order (1990–2010)
Season 6, Episode 19: “Slave”
Directed by Jace Alexander; written by René Balcer and Elaine Loeser.
Starring Jerry Orbach, Benjamin Bratt, S. Epatha Merkerson, Sam Waterston, Jill Hennessy, and Steven Hill.
May 25th
— In Heaven There Is No Beer (1984), last half hour
Directed by Les Blank and Maureen Gosling; produced by Les Blank; cinematography by Les Blank; edited by Maureen Gosling; sound by Maureen Gosling.
Featuring Henry Jasiewicz, Johnny Prytko, Walt Solek, and Jerry Halkoski.
Premiered on May 23, 1984.
Cute. There’s a part in which they try to excavate the cultural tradition of the polka. And now it’s a vestige of history, the collateral damage of rock and roll and popular culture?
— Floating Clouds (1955)
Directed by Mikio Naruse; written by Mikio Naruse and Yōko Mizuki.
Starring Hideko Takamine, Toshiro Mifune, Masayuki Mori, Chieko Nakakita, and Eijirō Tōno.
I think this may be the first Naruse film that I’ve seen: a long waiting to-do. At several months distance I recall now that the male character was a womanizer, one of whose conquests provoked the cuckolded husband to take his life (?) [that actor was hilarious in Yojimbo]; the reluctant late wife dies on an island and the reluctant husband is destitute.
— NYRB on Olivier Shrauwen’s graphic novel Sunday, how Brown failed in the North
May 26th
— To Live and Die in L.A. (1985)
Directed by William Friedkin; written by William Friedkin and Gerald Petievich.
Starring William Petersen, Willem Dafoe, John Pankow, Debra Feuer, John Turturro, Darlanne Fluegel, and Dean Stockwell.
Awash with 1980s postmodern aesthetics and — pace Friedkin — transgressive sexual politics in Dafoe’s “Rick Masters'” love interest, her male affect. Peterson now seems like an unlikely hero, but even more so Pankow.
I identify Pankow with the sitcom Mad About You (1992-99), starring Helen Hunt and Paul Reiser. He played the brother-in-law?
Undoubtedly the real star of the film was Willem Dafoe (related to Daniel Dafoe, you ask? hmmm, i dunno). The below still’s intentions are transparent.
— City of Industry (1997)
Directed by John Irvin; written by Ken Solarz.
Starring Harvey Keitel, Stephen Dorff, Timothy Hutton, Famke Janssen, Wade Dominguez, Michael Jai White, Lucy Liu, Reno Wilson, and Stuart Quan.
I guess I thought, I’m curious about Stephen Dorff, and it’s also got Timothy Hutton and Famke Janssen (imprurient interests) and may be good …?
Wasn’t.
— Virginia Woolf, To The Lighthouse, 5 pp.
Woolf wrote this book in the middle of her career, after Mrs. Dalloway, which I still have not successfully read to completion. One of my many shortcomings. Alas!
Of this book that I read on the recommendation very probably of a Reddit-contributor — the earnest, insightful folk responsible for so much mediocre commentary on this and that — I have to say that I’m not sure it’s totally a novel.
Perhaps that is a conservative judgment. My point is that the novel doesn’t follow a character, but really only a house.
In saying this I do not doubt its literary value. To the contrary.
But is it a novel?
May 27th
— The Dust Bowl (2012)
Episode 1 “The Great Plow‑Up”, first hour
Directed by Ken Burns; written by Dayton Duncan.
Starring Peter Coyote, Patricia Clarkson, and Carolyn McCormick.
Premiered on PBS on November 18, 2012.
One of the features of this film is to show that the dust bowl was a man-made disaster — an ecological crisis effected by overfarming a delicate landscape.
— Lighthouse, 5 pp.
May 28th
— Woolf, Lighthouse
— The Dust Bowl (2012)
Episode 1 “The Great Plow‑Up”, finished
May 29th
— A Bridge Too Far (1977)
Directed by Richard Attenborough; screenplay written by William Goldman, based on the book by Cornelius Ryan.
Starring Dirk Bogarde, James Caan, Michael Caine, Sean Connery, Edward Fox, Elliott Gould, Gene Hackman, Anthony Hopkins, Hardy Krüger, Laurence Olivier, Ryan O’Neal, Robert Redford, Maximilian Schell, and Liv Ullmann.
Premiered in the United States on June 15, 1977, with the U.K. premiere following on June 23, 1977.
Lucian, a WW2 junkie, and I have already watched this before. I like seeing Dirk Bogarde and an inadvertently hilarious Polish Gene Hackman and Anthony Hopkins. But it’s valuable to bear in mind this is the story of a strategic failure costing many lives. Equally, it’s not a great film. Low production values. But Bogarde has the best line at the end: “I always said it was a bridge too far” [he hadn’t really been saying that, the bastard Montgomery!].
