Tag: Film Review

Feminist-friendly frights: Horror movies worth a watch

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By Sophia-Joelle Oswald

For a movie to pass the Bechdel Test it must have at least two named women who talk to each other about something other than a man. Which is, quite frankly, the bare minimum. Thousands of movies have been tested for the Bechdel Test, but less than 57% of the films in the database meet all three of these criteria. 

Horror is the only film genre where women speak as often as men. Shocking, right? (Ha, see what we did there.)

Many horror movies put women at the center, giving them a chance to tell their own stories and share their points of view. 

As with all genres, there was a time when horror movies constantly portrayed female characters in an unempowering light. The final girl trope is the perfect example of this. The final girl is the last woman left alive at the end of a horror or slasher film. She alone is still standing, left to either defeat the killer or describe the series of events to the authorities. The final girl is a major part of many successful horror movies like Scream, A Nightmare on Elm Street, and Halloween. 

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Promising Young Woman is a Revenge Movie, But It’s Also a Tragedy

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By Abby Olcese
Originally published on thepitchkc.com

Forgiveness is a tricky thing. In the church, I was taught that we’re supposed to forgive the people who do us wrong. Simple enough in Sunday school—you take my cookie, I might get mad, but it’s not a huge deal.

I can forgive you. I’m still a Christian, and I still believe in forgiveness.

As I’ve gotten older, however, I’ve come to understand that it looks different when the transgression is more complicated than taking my Oreo during snack time. 

In Christianity, asking God for forgiveness comes with the understanding that you’re not going to blindly commit the same sin again. When we forgive others, the same sense of grace is present. We forgive not to diminish the fact we were hurt—wrong is still wrong—but because we’re hoping the person we forgive understands the consequences of their actions, and is sorry. It’s a healing process that’s meant to go both ways.

Emerald Fennell’s Promising Young Woman is an exploration of what can happen to a victimized person when there is no atonement.

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Reviewing the Systems of Inequality in BlacKkKlansman

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By Samantha Sprouse

Editor’s note: This a research paper. We get it, it’s a little research-y. But we still thought it was pretty neat, and wanted to share it with you.

BlacKkKlansman is a 2018 American film directed by Spike Lee. The film confronts racism head on by portraying the real-life story of Ron Stallworth, Colorado Springs’ first Black police officer. In the late 1970’s, Stallworth worked undercover to infiltrate the local Ku Klux Klan and prosecute its members. The film’s message is clear: Racism is systemic, pervasive, and enduring. Many aspects of systems of inequality are evident in the film.

The film begins with Stallworth getting hired at the Colorado Springs police department and being harassed by white police officers. Stallworth is asked to work undercover at an upcoming rally where Black Panthers activist Kwame Ture is giving a speech, because white police are fearful of a subsequent “race war.” There, he meets Patrice, a young student activist who encourages him to fight for Black liberation.

After being moved by the speech, Stallworth sees an ad in the local paper for the KKK. He calls the number, pretending to be white, and requests to join. Because Stallworth is Black, the police reluctantly agree to send Jewish, but white, “Flip Zimmerman” to pose as Stallworth. The movie follows these undercover meetings as Stallworth talks to the KKK on the phone and Zimmerman meets them in person, exposing their violent and hateful plans.

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