PopCult Reviews

Comic Book Review – Spider-Man Epic Collection: Man-Wolf at Midnight

Spider-Man Epic Collection: Man-Wolf at Midnight (2022)
Reprints Amazing Spider-Man #124-142 and Giant-Size Super-Heroes #1
Written by Gerry Conway
Art by Ross Andru, Gil Kane, John Romita, and Paul Reinman

Something terrible happened to Peter Parker, and no one will let him process it and move on. The iconic man behind the spider lives in stasis between two poles: Uncle Ben’s death and Gwen Stacy’s death. There is this brief period between the two where he could be Spider-Man. Yet even in that, Captain Stacy’s death was a way of reigniting the angst of Peter’s guilt. This is who Spider-Man effectively is in popular culture: a perpetually grieving man who can never be absolved of his guilt. At least Batman is allowed to be grim, while Spidey has to joke about everything while psychologically unable to express the weight of his pain. Reading this collection caused me to completely rethink how I feel about this character.

Movie Review – Dogville

Dogville (2002)
Written and directed by Lars von Trier

I remember where I was when I first saw this film. That was twenty-one years ago. It was not until today that I really understood what the message was. Lars von Trier is a controversial figure, to say the least. His art has always been profoundly confrontational & abrasive from my perspective, but I don’t feel upset enough to not want to engage with it. He has undoubtedly spoken without thinking first, but that doesn’t mean he is wrong. I do believe translation between languages plays a big part. I have thought things but cannot articulate them with precision for years. Perhaps the argument should be made that artists have a tremendous gravity in choosing their words carefully, but who determines what it means to “choose words carefully.” Whose feelings are we being told to spare? Those in power have certainly co-opted the language of the oppressed to twist much of our perceptions into seeing the victimizer as the victim. It’s so insidiously done, so precise & sick.

Movie Review – Pain & Gain

Pain & Gain (2013)
Written by Christopher Markus & Stephen McFeely
Directed by Michael Bay

We started with Kelly Reichardt’s Wendy and Lucy but have taken a sharp left turn in our “This Is America” series with this film. I am not a fan of Michael Bay’s movies. I can’t name one I have ever enjoyed. His maximalist style of filmmaking is the kind that bores me really fast: a hyperactive editor who makes constant cuts so that the entire picture resembles one extended lumbering trailer. However, if we are looking for films that capture an aspect of what America is, Mr. Bay clearly has his finger on the country’s pulse. His early Transformers movies were glorified ads for the U.S. military. There are lots of American flags waving in the wind. However, this veneer of post-9/11 jingoistic patriotism hides a deep contempt Bay has for his audience. This film, in particular, is dripping with scorn.

Movie Review – Wendy and Lucy

Wendy and Lucy (2009)
Written by Jon Raymond & Kelly Reichardt
Directed by Kelly Reichardt

I’ve said it before here, and it seems to be an evergreen statement, but shit in the States looks fucking bad, folks. I got out in September 2021, so my experience is through what I read online (always with a grain of salt), chatting with people back there, and my lifelong pursuit of educating myself on the fundamental structures of our societies. Over half of currently homeless Americans are over the age of 50, yet you wouldn’t know it from the Boomers still clinging on to their spoils as they slip further between their fingers. Capitalism is a hell of a drug. I consider myself very lucky that I am where I am and have what I have. It’s not a fortune, but I can breathe reasonably easily daily. I find it highly upsetting that so many cannot do the same, certainly, those I know who have busted their asses harder than me. It serves to underline capitalism’s great contradiction: work hard, and you will be rewarded.

Movie Review – The Creator

The Creator (2023)
Written by Gareth Edwards and Chris Weitz
Directed by Gareth Edwards

I can’t say I’ve ever been greatly impressed by Gareth Edwards’ films. I’ve seen all four of his directorial efforts at this point (this film, Star Wars: Rogue One, Godzilla, and Monsters), and what lingers with me is what a fantastic production designer Edwards is. Writing characters? Eh, not so much. However, the man knows how to convey a sense of scope & scale and, even more importantly, establish the vibe of a movie. The Creator is a film that continues this trend with the director. His characters are flat and one-dimensional, but damn if the world he creates isn’t one I want to explore. He establishes excellent video game settings in many ways but then tries to make movies in them.

PopCult Podcast – The Beasts/Anatomy of a Fall

Two new European films make up our double feature this week. In one a French transplant to northern Spain comes into conflict with the locals. In the second, a German woman living in France is accused of murdering her husband and must go through a harrowing courtroom trial, the only witness her blind son.

Solo Tabletop RPG Review & Actual Play – Dungeon World Solo Part Three

Read parts one and two first

During the last session of Dungeon World solo, two random elements came up that I immediately flagged as important parts of the story going forward. The first was the band of pirates along the Mondeo coast. It made sense to connect them to the Larcenists Society danger. They are the naval branch, and their leader, Captain Molly Rhys, feels like a decent bad-guy boss to face off with at the end of this series. The second was the magically infected orc living within The Sunken Tower. I had no idea he would be in there when I used the Perilous Wilds tables. One descriptor from my rolls stood out the most to me, and that was “primitive,” which made me think not of “unsophisticated” but “prehistoric.” What would a prehistoric orc be doing in this Tower? I had some ideas.

Comic Book Review – Spider-Man Epic Collection: The Goblin’s Last Stand

Amazing Spider-Man Epic Collection: The Goblin’s Last Stand (2017)
Reprints Amazing Spider-Man #105-123
Written by Stan Lee & Jerry Conway
Art by John Romita, Gil Kane, Jim Starlin, and Paul Reinman

Throughout the 1960s, Stan Lee had his hand in every single Marvel comic being published. This was most often in the role of scripting, which ensured the comics all had a similar voice. He also garnered the ire of his artistic collaborators, Jack Kirby & Steve Ditko, being the most well-known. The fact that most people associate Marvel with Lee without knowing who these other people are indicates the sort of manipulator Lee was. By 1972, Lee stepped away from writing duties and assumed the role of publisher, overseeing Marvel’s growing media empire.

Movie Review – Varda by Agnes

Varda by Agnes (2019)
Written and directed by Agnes Varda

Few of us get to depart from life able to talk about what all those years meant. As a filmmaker, Agnes Varda seemed acutely aware of the sands running through the hourglass, and her last twenty years of filmmaking (ages 70-90) seemed to come out of that urgency. The stories she was telling always connected to her, whether flowing out into the lives of others or having their lives bring up long-forgotten memories from her past. This is why her documentaries during this period feel more communal than ever. Varda is a perfect contemporary example of the wise elder, the sage who imparts their experiences from a life spent in intense thought and conversation. In this final film, released just months after her passing, Varda focuses on three key concepts: inspiration, creation, and sharing.

Movie Review – Faces Places

Faces Places (2017)
Written by Agnes Varda
Directed by Agnes Varda & JR

French director Agnes Varda has never hidden her love of the French village. Her filmmaking career began with photographing the people who lived & worked in a working-class seaside town. Her first short film starred a couple who lived in such a place. While Varda’s narrative film work has varied in its subjects and interest, her documentary work has remained fixed on the working & the poor, people who do not get spotlighted much in media or society. That trend continues in her collaboration with street artist & photographer JR. They create giant portraits of people they meet, plastering them onto the facades of buildings and allowing so many “invisible” people to be seen. Along the way, the friendship between Varda and JR blossoms.