Category: Social Issues

Lebanon & Beale Street: Closing Day of the Mill Valley Film Festival

~ Lincoln Spector ~ 2 Comments

This year's Mill Valley Film Festival closed Sunday. I caught two narrative films there. I loved them both. Both films will get theatrical releases in the near future. A Capernaum Children living in poverty have to do for themselves in this heartbreaking story of love and the lack of love. Twelve-year-old Zain sues his parents for … Continue reading Lebanon & Beale Street: Closing Day of the Mill Valley Film Festival

The Hate U Give comes back to you

~ Lincoln Spector

A- Drama Written by Audrey Wells, from a novel by Angie Thomas Directed by George Tillman Jr. Of this year's many impressive films about the African-American experience, The Hate U Give must be the most thematically ambitious. It covers police brutality, inner-city neighborhoods, being black in an overwhelmingly white school, drug dealing, black-on-black violence, demonstrations, riots, … Continue reading The Hate U Give comes back to you

Bisbee ’17: Small town with a cruel past

~ Lincoln Spector

B+ Documentary Directed by Robert Greene Special screening at New Mission, Monday, 7:00 Opens Friday Written text on a red background tells us the story before the movie really starts. In 1917, Bisbee, Arizona was a prosperous mining town. But many of the miners wanted a part of that prosperity and joined the International Workers of … Continue reading Bisbee ’17: Small town with a cruel past

My Last Day at the San Francisco Jewish Film Festival

~ Lincoln Spector

For personal reasons, Saturday was my last day at the San Francisco Jewish Film Festival. I caught two documentaries. A Science Fair Highly-motivated high school students compete in local and national science fairs for fun and college tuition. They also hope to place in the biggest such event, the International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF). This … Continue reading My Last Day at the San Francisco Jewish Film Festival

Take Action Day at the San Francisco Jewish Film Festival

~ Lincoln Spector

Friday was the San Francisco Jewish Film Festival's Take Action Day, which, when you think about it, is a strange name for sitting on your butt all day. They screened five political documentaries at the Castro that day. I saw the first three. None of these could reasonably be called Jewish films. The Festival justified … Continue reading Take Action Day at the San Francisco Jewish Film Festival

Freedom of Expression, Liz Garbus, & The Fourth Estate

~ Lincoln Spector

Thursday night, my wife and I visited the Castro for the San Francisco Jewish Film Festival's Freedom of Expression Award, which goes to a Jewish filmmaker who has worked to preserve our freedoms. This year, the award goes to documentarian Liz Garbus, the maker of Girlhood, Bobby Fischer Against the World, and What Happened, Miss … Continue reading Freedom of Expression, Liz Garbus, & The Fourth Estate

Sorry to Bother You, but you don’t want to miss this movie

~ Lincoln Spector

A- Comedy Written and directed by Boots Riley I worry that people will assume that this very pointed comedy is nothing but a Get Out rip-off. Both movies combine humor, horror, and social commentary, and were made by an African-American neophyte director with a decidedly black point of view. But if you know anything about … Continue reading Sorry to Bother You, but you don’t want to miss this movie