Spoiler Scale (How spoilery is this article on a scale of 1 to 10?): 2 As the modern god (or devil) of middlebrow cinema, writer/director Christopher Nolan’s primary strength (or weakness) is his penchant for abbreviating the narrative beats.  And this aspect is indispensable (or overdone) in his latest film, Interstellar, where time is relative and characters need to traverse galaxies ... Read More »

Spoiler Scale (How spoilery is this article on a scale of 1 to 10?):  4 Make no mistake, Man of Steel, the superhero formerly – and in some circles, still – known as “Superman,” is still the ultimate American Jesus.  There is nothing particularly spoilery about this observation.  This fact should have been obvious, I suppose, from the Terrence-Malick-does-Hallmark teaser trailer.  What is surprising is the degree to which ... Read More »

Spoiler Scale (How spoilery is this article on a scale of 1 to 10?):  9    This is Joseph Campbell territory.  As such, it is important to remember that, as the cornerstones of a twentieth-century mythology, comic book characters are not supposed to be three-dimensional human beings, but more personifications of distinct ideas.  Indeed, “personification” might be too strong a word.  Rather, ... Read More »