The Undertow: Scenes from a Slow Civil War (2023)

    A knife sits next to a ruler and a lone building displays a cross

    This was a book that, despite effectively not reading books anymore, I was always going to read. I have found Jeff Sharlet’s work to be indispensable in today’s America. It strikes me as the type of work that people think is overblown in its conclusions.



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    I watched the movie. You can read what I thought of it here: https://jerz.us/movies/the-trial

    I watched the movie. You can read what I thought of it here: https://jerz.us/movies/the-trial

    The Trial (1962)

    A man stands in a hallway with a warped perspective showing several different dimensions of himself on the cover of the movie The Trial

    I avoided this for a while. There were a couple reasons, all of which added up to avoidance because I was afraid I wouldn’t get it. I read the book, admittedly half-assedly, so not really at all, a couple decades ago. I remembered enough about it to get the main point without much nuance. It was also a super intriguing concept, and I was drawn to Kafka after The Metamorphosis already. So, this has always stuck with me as something to explore more deeply.



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    November 24, 2023
    Tags: criterion collection

    The Grand Prismatic Spring is something I could look at all day.
    Steam rises off a pool of clear blue water with colors emanating from the edges
    The Grand Prismatic Spring is wildly colorful and huge. Photo by Ryan C. Jerz

    Videodrome (1983)

    A man inserts his head into a television screen on the cover of the movie Videodrome

    I am definitely not someone who seeks out this body horror stuff. I would actively avoid it, honestly. But while watching this I realized I really like Titane, which is similar in the shock factor with the body.



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    November 24, 2023
    Tags: criterion collection

    Here I am at the entrance sign in Gardiner, Montana. A couple hundred yards past is the Roosevelt Arch.
    Me standing at the entrance sign for Yellowstone National Park in Gardiner, Montana
    I had to prove that I was here--even if it's just for me to remember in two years.

    High Sierra (1941)

    A man holds a gun while a woman stands behind him on the cover of the movie High Sierra

    Came to see some great early-Hollywood eastern Sierra goodness and got a tremendous chase scene up the Whitney Portal, culminating in a hasty scramble up the rocks.



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    November 22, 2023
    Tags: criterion collection

    Yellowstone Falls

    A waterfall cuts through a canyon with trees surrounding
    There is one movie I hope to watch this weekend. I have four days off to do it. I will likely watch five different movies instead.