Quenched by Camp: Bandits vs Samurai Squadron is a Bloody Treat

Pop illustration of Tatsuya Nakadai as Kumokiri Nizaemon in black robes with bloody katana on a yellow background. Japanese characters behind Tatsuya in red read: Bandits vs Samurai Squadron. Illustration by author Jake Rudegeair.

|Jake Rudegeair| A lot has been written about camp, especially when it comes to film. It’s one of those delicious words that we all seem to understand, but gets so warped by bumps and nodules of meaning that its definition keeps changing. Maybe it’s like that old subjective definition… Continue reading

Programmer’s Notes on Hideo Gosha, Wandering Ronin

The image is black and white. A man lays back against a wooden wall and is holding a sword in front of him. Reflected in the sword is the face of a woman.

|John Moret| Ronin, noun, historical (in feudal Japan): a wandering samurai who had no lord or master.

On a wintry day in 2012, a friend and I met for our weekly movie and lunch meetup. It was his choice that week and he brought a new release from the Criterion Collection, Three Outlaw Continue reading

The Conformist: Finding Purpose in a Fascist State

In the bottom left corner, a man in a suit carries a bouquet of yellow flowers. He is walking past a large brick wall with words in Latin carved on it.

|Eli Holm| Suspended in anticipation, a man named Clerici sits awaiting his cue, a pawn of a larger game, too terrified to sleep, waiting to strike. He’s in a blank slate of ruin, without discernible emotion, putting on his mask of high-class clothing, tucking his gun, braving the winter air, ready.. Continue reading

The Wild Bunch: Between Companionship and Despair

A man in a hat (Ernest Borgnine) stares down the barrel of his rifle in "The Wild Bunch."

|Rowan A. Smith| The Wild Bunch was a movie that for many years sat for me in a category most film-lovers are very familiar with: “I’ll get to it.” When I was a teenager, I watched a lot of the most beloved Westerns and didn’t find many I enjoyed. It wasn’t until I was in my late twenties… Continue reading

Violence in The Dirty Dozen and The Last of Us

A close-up as Donald Sutherland smiles at Lee Marvin, who has a grim expression, in the film The Dirty Dozen.

|Dylan Walker| While I’m not really a video game person, I’ve been intrigued by The Last of Us franchise thanks to a coworker who sings its praises, positive reviews of the HBO show, and a mild crush I’ve developed on Pedro Pascal. So, the other day, I decided to spend some time… Continue reading