film

I have always had a baseless, irrational hatred for Cameron Diaz. I've never kept up with any tabloid news about her personal life, so it's not like I think she's a bad person; I don't even think she's a bad actress. I just don't like her. So it was inevitable that I would have disliked Bad Teacher, even if it hadn't been so... bad.

Bridesmaids—in theaters today—is the new potential blockbuster comedy from Judd Apatow, directed by Paul Feig and written by Kristin Wiig and Annie Mumolo. We left this movie with distinctly different opinions. Time for a point/counterpoint!

The Greatest Movie Ever Sold is a perfect display of what Spurlock’s brand personality analyst calls his mix of "playful and mindful" qualities. He sells himself with a shit-eating grin, riding the wave of his own charm, which is a force unto itself—fueling the camera equipment, feeding the crew, somehow exempting him from an icky breakdown of integrity even while dressed in a suit jacket cluttered with corporate sponsor decals. He convinces you that the film’s corporate doublespeak tagline ("he’s not selling out, he’s buying in") is actually true, that there is a difference.

In the early '90s–before Goldeneye–I created a silly 'zine called "Judi Dench: Action Hero." In it I presented an alternate universe where Dame Judi Dench was a cheeky action hero in the manner of Bruce Willis or Jason Statham, complete with fake film posters, movie reviews and interviews with the woman herself–fashioned from my vivid imagination and repeat viewings of 84 Charing Cross Road and A Room with a View.

"FEMINISTS, WE’RE CALLING YOU! PLEASE REPORT TO THE FRONT DESK!"

It’s fucking hard to be feminist. (If you just made a dick joke to yourself then get the heck outta here!) No one said negotiating power was easy, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t rock out while challenging the status-quo, being politically active and refusing to compromise your principles. Enter Le Tigre, and for fun’s sake, let’s put ‘em on tour!

Iranian filmmaker Lila Ghobady speaks about resistance and Iranian underground cinema.

Several years ago, I read the novel Push written by performance poet, Sapphire.  I remember climbing into bed one night to read it and finishing it at about 5 AM.  Several times I had to put the book down for a few minutes, just to get myself together, to breathe.   Once I put the book down for the final time, I still couldn't sleep: I was emotionally wrung out and deeply disturbed.  It's hard to recover from a book that opens with: "I was left back when I was twelve because I had a baby for my fahver..."

Palestinian filmmaker and poet Annemarie Jacir turned to her homeland to make her first feature-length film about a working class Palestinian American woman who struggles with the country’s tumultuous past and present, and makes a decision that will change her life.

"Forty-three per cent of American women suffer from female sexual dysfunction. Or do they?" Is "female sexual dysfunction" a real disease? Or is it just a marketing ploy invented by Big Pharma in hopes of profiting from "female Viagra"? These are the questions documentary filmmaker Liz Canner set out to answer in Orgasm, Inc.

Greetings, everyone! My name is Tammy Oler, and I've been a contributor to Bitch for about five years. I'm thrilled to be joining the blogging team here. With "The Female Gaze," I'll be focusing a feminist eye on what's new and making news in film, including new releases, trends and industry buzz.

There's already a bunch of romantic comedies slated for release early in 2009. I'd like to kick off this blog by taking a look at trailers for two of them that hit the Web over the Thanksgiving holiday.