Author Archives: Brian

Jean Renoir parle de son art

Posted on October 24, 2011 by Brian

I copied down these words of Jean Renoir, originally spoken in French of course, from the subtitles accompanying an interview that Jacques Rivette did with Renoir in the 1960s. The program was called, “Jean Renoir parle de son art.” We … Continue reading →

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Kurosawa’s RAN

Posted on October 23, 2011 by Brian

I do count myself as a fan of King Lear , and I do count myself as a fan of Akira Kurosawa, but I don’t count myself as a fan of Ran. I’m not sure if I dislike Ran in … Continue reading →

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Thought for the day from Paul Valéry

Posted on October 17, 2011 by Brian

“One should be light like a bird, not like a feather.”

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Cocteau on myth

Posted on October 17, 2011 by Brian

“I’ve always preferred mythology to history. Because history is made up of truths which eventually turn into lies. Mythology is made up of lies that eventually become truths.”

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A Gloss of Royal Illusions in RICHARD II

Posted on October 7, 2011 by Brian

I thought maybe it would be helpful to post an essay I wrote five years ago about Shakespeare’s Richard 2.   Stylistically, I wouldn’t write the same essay today, but the essay gets at a few important points, and it is … Continue reading →

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On Protestant Elizabethans practicing Catholicism in the theater

Posted on September 18, 2011 by Brian

The principle of  “the double” functions in Shakespeare on both a character’s interior and exterior.  As for the exterior: There are doubles such as the twins Antipholus, and a doubling of the doubles with the twins Dromio, and this is … Continue reading →

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Sex, money, and art in A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM

Posted on September 18, 2011 by Brian

The reason to be interested in Shakespeare’s comedies is because they offer Shakespeare’s most direct thoughts and critiques (and some funny jokes) about social dilemmas, particularly those of love and marriage and family and money.  With these matters, Shakespeare suggests, … Continue reading →

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Some Ado about Shakespeare

Posted on September 18, 2011 by Brian

“Much Ado About Nothing” isn’t a play that consistently delights me, and  I would say that it is significantly inferior to Shakespeare’s four or five best comedies. But I think “Much Ado” is a good play for actors. When I … Continue reading →

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CHINATOWN, plot, and the Noir plot

Posted on September 18, 2011 by Brian

I was looking at a long old essay I did in 2006 about the Polanski/Towne movie Chinatown, an example of neo-Noir.   Although I wouldn’t write the same essay today, some portions of the essay may contain some useful thinking about … Continue reading →

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Thoughts re Notes From Underground

Posted on September 7, 2011 by Brian

After reading this short Dostoevsky novel, I’m left wondering why anyone much cares for it.  It seems to me that the book’s finer moments are weak versions of what you mind find in Kafka or Beckett, for example.   It’s also … Continue reading →

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