Sidewalks are more interesting than gay rights

Sadly, since I moved into the Mountain time zone last year, my formerly-deemed must-see viewing of The Daily Show and The Colbert Report has dwindled from four times a week to the occasional episode on Hulu and clips here and there when I can find the time. The reason? By some ridiculous whim of the programmers here, these shows air at midnight and 12:30am instead of the much more respectable East Coast times of 11 and 11:30pm. Why? I have no idea. But I do know that most nights that's just too late for me...well, if I actually expect to be productive the next day. So while I can't catch all the great Jon Stewart moments when they happen, sometimes other lovely people post clips that just must be shared:

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Queer and Loathing in D.C.
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Ron Paul Interview

H/T to Appetite for Equal Rights.

Nip/Tuck is sewin' up the perfect woman

Not that I've seen more than an episode or two of FX's Nip/Tuck or think of it as a bastion of feminist virtues, but still, is this really necessary?



There are just too many problems here to name them all: from the perfect (white) woman being sewn together by two (white) men and a group of stiletto-and-bustier-clad Asian women working in what looks like a very antiseptic sweatshop and the disturbing interplay of sexualized imagery with scalpels and needles to the outright ogling of the perfectly-constructed faceless woman by the two male protagonists at the end of the ad. Talk about the male gaze and the deconstructed, dis-empowered female body!

I realize all these themes fit in quite seamlessly (no pun intended) with the show, but that still doesn't mean this promo doesn't bug the shit out of me.

Nobel Peace Prize

Today NY Times headline reads "In Surprise, Nobel Peace Prize to Obama for Diplomacy"

I have to admit I'm very confused. Not upset, just confused. The article mitigates that a bit, but still...

What do you all think?

Two Great Opportunities for Women Artists

A.I.R. Gallery has two exciting opportunities for women artists...and the deadlines are soon, so check them out!

1. Open Call, submissions due October 2, 2009

"The Man I Wish I Was", Open Call for artist submissions. A.I.R. Gallery in Brooklyn, NY invites any artist worldwide who self-identifies as female to submit original works of art for a one-month group exhibit in January 2010. We look forward to unanticipated perspectives and encourage an open interpretation of the theme “The Man I Wish I Was.” For full details and application see A.I.R. Gallery website.

2. A.I.R. Fellowship Program, applications due October 31, 2009

18-month professional development program with solo show opportunity for women in the NYC area. Panelists: Lowery Stokes-Sims, Curator, Museum of Art and Design; Harriet Senie, Art Critic and Art Historian; and Catherine Morris, Curator of the Elizabeth Sackler Center for Feminist Art at The Brooklyn Museum. Apply online or download an application. Or send SASE for prospectus to: A.I.R. Gallery, 111 Front St #228, Brooklyn, NY, 11217.

The Good Wife

I enjoy a good television pilot, one that keeps you on your toes the whole way through; one that involves you quickly and immersively in the characters' lives, letting you identify with the protagonist in a natural and unforced way; and one that trusts its viewers to be smart enough to figure out what's going on without a lot of obvious exposition. The pilot for CBS' The Good Wife, which aired tonight, was one such episode: quick-paced, well-acted (love Julianna Margulies, Christine Baranski, and Chris Noth), smart and compelling. Of course, only time will tell if the show itself is any good over the long haul, but so far I really like the juxtaposition of political scandal, domestic life, and the judicial office environment in which Margulies' Alicia finds herself. I like that Alicia's portrayed as a capable, intelligent woman who's willing to stand up for herself but who still possesses a certain believable vulnerability and sensitivity around the issue of her husband's infidelity and arrest. She's still learning the ropes at the law firm, and while she may not always get everything right, it's obvious that she won't take any flak...at least not for long.

So far, I like. Anyone else watch the pilot?

What's wrong with this picture?

No comment necessary, I think. From today's NY Times:

Killer Women

A complete draft of my dissertation is now complete (mini-yay!) and though I still have a bit of tweaking and streamlining to do, I think I can safely say that I'm allowed to have a life again for at least a little while. So, I've been thinking about movies, especially movies I'd like to see, and trying to make sense of my recent interest in one particular horror film even though I do no--I repeat, do not--generally like horror films. Now, I can do a psychological thriller or an over-the-top werewolf/vampire blood-fest like Underworld, but I don't generally do strict horror of the slasher variety (and never of the unfortunately-but-probably-aptly-named "torture porn" variety). Thing is, I'm an absolute scaredy-cat when it comes to graphically-violent visual imagery, and I just have no interest in subjecting myself to stuff like that voluntarily. Of course, none of that explains why I want to see this:



What is it about this film that intrigues me? There are many aspects of it--like the exploitative faux-lesbian vibe and the power-hungry vampire girl trope--that are trite and cliched. And yet... Maybe it's because it's written by Diablo Cody (Juno, United States of Tara) and directed by Karyn Kusama (Aeon Flux, Girlfight). Or maybe it's just that I like that it has two female leads (even though one of them is evil). Or maybe it's that amidst the pandering through eroticized violence and typical slasher/revenge plot there's hint of a feminist resonance in there. Maybe just a little...?

What do you all think? Anyone else interested in seeing Jennifer's Body (no pun intended)? I'll let you all know what I think once I see it.

In the same vein, I've been wanting to see this film for ages...



...and, if I had to choose a favorite horror film, this would be it: