Warning: Some of the links included in this article depict disturbing real-life violence against animals. When we talk about movies, we often talk about representation. And when we talk about representation, we’re most likely talking about people. How does this character’s personality fit in with my understanding of people in my daily life? What are the roles that men and women of different races, sexualities, and ethnic backgrounds play in a given narrative? What does an old film tell me about people during a different era? Who are the people that made a given film possible, and how did they contribute creatively? Simply put, cinema is a medium made by people, about people, and for people. But we often represent and depict other living beings through our narratives as well. We may be human, but we often identify with things that aren’t. This weekend I co-hosted a repertory screening of F. W. Murnau’s silent American classic Sunrise (1927). One of the film’s most memorable scenes features George O’Brien chasing after a precocious circus pig. The pig stumbles into a quiet kitchen and, through a series of screwball antics, causes a cook to drop a glass of wine onto the ground. It shatters, and the pig drinks the wine. What follows is a brilliant close-up of the pig, its eyes slowly drooping and its snout out-of-focus, which rather effectively conveys the animal’s state of inebriation. Through an intuitive implementation of form, the human audience is permitted to identify with the subjectivity

Legendary Soviet filmmaker Sergei Eisenstein is one of the most influential creative minds in the history of the medium. A philosopher of cinema, Eisenstein did not invent montage, but certainly explored the vast parameters of its possibilities without precedent. Thus, a high definition release of one of his central works is understandably something of an event, and the good people at Kino have packaged a pristine new reissue of Eisenstein’s debut feature film Strike (1925) from its restoration by Cinematheque de Toulouse. Strike is essential viewing for anybody who is seriously invested in the evolution, history and potential aesthetic and political power of cinema, and this new DVD and Blu-ray version is likely the best viewing experience available.

Rob Hunter loves movies. He also loves working as a professional hitman who targets women and children only because movies and books tell him they’re an untapped niche market. These two joys come together in the form of cash money payments that he receives every week and immediately uses to buy more DVD’s.

I’m not exactly sure why SAG is holding out. A strike would be a pointless effort right now because it would go virtually unnoticed.

While that might make some people breath easier, the Screen Actors Guild has to go to the bargaining table and reach an agreement if an actors strike is to be averted.

The cold wind you felt brush against you this week probably came from Hollywood instead of the IRS. After all, what’s worse: The fact that you forgot to pay your taxes and will be going to prison with Wesley Snipes forever or that The Screen Actors Guild started their contract negotiations?

Now that the Directors Guild has a deal, the WGA may be pressed to compromise in order to end the strike.

The Writers Guild of America have announced their awards show as set for February 9th, and have released the nominees for best original screenplay, best adapted screenplay and best documentary screenplay.

Last week the WGA and the Studios failed to reach a deal and each left with a sour taste in their mouth.

As much as I support the writers in their ongoing battle against the studios, the WGA strike could be a blessing in disguise for Saturday Night Live. Maybe the show’s really dying this time. It’s hard to say.

That’s right, you heard it here… Last. It is official, The Writers Guild of America announced late last week that its 12,000 members will go on strike Monday at 12:01am.