Culture

Agora Phobia

A new film about ancient religious conflict resonates, but fails at the box office.

Ralph Seliger

Todd Solondz’s Dystopia in Suburbia

In his sixth film, Life During Wartime, the film director offers another twisted modern fairy tale that revels in taboos.

Michael Atkinson

Female Rail Tale

Linda Grant Niemann goes beyond clichés to show what it's really like to work on the railroad.

Mike Matejka

Virtually Conservative

Most video games—in which you accumulate stuff and/or dominate the world—are the opposite of progressive.

Michael Atkinson

The Great Trans-Frontier

Trinidad, Colo., is the 'sex change capital of the world.' A documentary now out on DVD explains why.

Jakob VanLammeren

Working on a (Temp) Dream

Welcome to the freelance economy, where workers are atomized, badly compensated and strangely optimistic.

Richard Greenwald

‘So Is She Gay?’

Whether or not Elena Kagan is a lesbian shouldn't distract us from a simple fact: America isn't ready for an openly gay Supreme Court judge.

Jeremy Gantz

Networking the Neighborhood

A Vermont town reinvents the Net.

Bill McKibben

Organizing for the Impossible

Si Kahn's new 'guide for rabble-rousers' challenges community organizers to think very carefully about their campaigns for justice.

Adam Kader

Plight of the Living Dead

The strange longevity of George A. Romero's zombies.

Michael Atkinson

Stop Loss Blues

After superior officers heard his song 'Stop Lossed,' hip-hop artist Marc Hall was arrested and discharged from the U.S. Army.

Nan Levinson

A New Day for the New Deal?

Tony Judt diagnoses America's decline.

Melvyn Dubofsky

Studs Terkel: 96 Years in 40 Minutes

Eric Simonson's new film portrait of the ubiquitous journalist and author comes up short on complexity.

Dan Dineen

Springsteen’s Salvation

A new book reveals The Boss' enduring allure.

Theo Anderson

Femivores in the Henhouse

Feminists debate the meaning of "chicks with chicks."

Members of WAM!

A Soft Focus on War

How Hollywood hides the horrors of war.

Slavoj Žižek

Notes From the Frontier of New Orleans

Trying to understand the Sixth Ward's screams.

Woodlief Thomas

The Spanish Soccer War

When FC Barca and Real Madrid face each other on April 11, Spain's political history will loom large.

Pete Redington