Art

To say that it’s been an interesting few weeks here in the United States would feel like the understatement of the century at this point.

From attacks on the trans community, to the predictable crackdown on DEI, and giving the richest man in the world carte blanche over the federal government, it’s anything but business as usual in Washington these days. Reading the news these days feels like getting punched out by a prime Mike Tyson and wondering when the hell the bell is going to ring to give you a pause to catch your breath.

For the creative community these are interesting times nonetheless. Art alone won’t save us, but it can help give us meaning during these chaotic times. Whether it be paintings, drawings, television, film, or literature, all have meaning and purpose and must be protected. I emphasize protected, because the arts are being threatened by the anti-DEI dragnet currently taking hold within the current administration.

However, despite these attacks, artists and creatives don’t have to take this lying down. As a matter of fact, some of the best work comes during troubled times. Case-in-point during the 1960s, probably the roughest decade for America (until ironically, the 2020s) some of the best music this country has ever produced came out during that era of Civil Rights, war, and societal upheaval.

I have no idea what these next 4 years will hold, but I know that as creatives, we must continue to speak truth to power, regardless of who occupies 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. For our country and future selves depend on it.

2024 was the year that I got reacquainted with the theater-going experience again after almost 5 years. I went to see ‘The Photograph’ back in February 2020 with a coworker and would not step foot again in a theater until April 2023 when I saw ‘John Wick 4.’ It would not be until last year, however, that I would make repeated trips to the darkened room and see movies as they were meant to be made.

With that said, I really enjoyed all the films I saw this year. Between ‘Didi,’ ‘Exhibiting Forgiveness,’ ‘A Real Pain,’ and even ‘Deadpool and Wolverine,’ I enjoyed every experience. However one film stood above them all to win my award for movie of the year. That film was ‘Nickel Boys.’

On the surface, ‘Nickel Boys’ is about a young man who, the summer he is supposed to head to college, gets caught up in the judicial system and instead spends years in a juvenile detention facility. It’s worth noting that this is 1960s Flordia, and segregation is not only encouraged but required. So, as a young black man caught up in the system, we see the main character, Elwood, and his friend Turner deal with levels of isolation and punishment that would break most men — let alone boys.

What’s unique about this film is that much of it is shot from a first-person perspective. It’s a perspective that I cannot recall seeing used extensively in a film before. At first, it was somewhat jarring to get used to. But then, it made sense. You, the viewer, are literally “inhabiting” the body of these characters and seeing the world literally through their eyes. It was very moving and I recommend anyone reading this to see it.

When the Call is Coming from Inside the House: The Role of the Creative During These Times

My 2024 Movie of the Year