Left of the Projector

This week we discuss one of the most important revolutionary films ever produced, "The Battle of Algiers." Directed by Gillo Pontecorvo and staring Jean Martin, Saadi Yacef, Brahim Hadjadj and Tommaso Neri, the film was released in 1966 and portrays the actions undertaken by rebels during the Algerian War against the French occupation of Algeria. Released only four years after the Algerian War and the successful revolution and independence of Algeria from the French, and less than a decade after the events of the film itself, "The Battle of Algiers" was shot on location and is cast almost entirely with members of the Algerian community who were participants in the revolution or lived through it. We discuss the impact the film had on society at large, the way in which it starkly portrays the violence of revolution while perfectly capturing the inherent humanity of those of us who want to bring about a better future for all even though we must use the tools of violence to do so.To discuss the film we are joined by Aaron, a good friend of one of our hosts, an activist, an organizer, and a man with more to say about this film than we could ever fit into a single episode. Left of the Projector Linkshttps://boxd.it/5T9O1https://leftoftheprojectorpod.threadless.com/https://www.instagram.com/the_red_gobbo/https://www.instagram.com/millennialmarxist1/https://leftoftheprojector.com

This week we discuss the perfect film for everyone with a "World's Greatest Dad" mug tucked away in a cabinet, "Oldboy." The original from South Korea, not the US remake. Released in 2003, "Oldboy" was directed by Park Chan-wook and stars Choi Min-sik, Yoo Ji-tae and Kang Hye-jung. Widely regarded as one of the greatest films of all time, and is considered a classic of modern South Korean Cinema. A masterpiece of revenge, the film tells the story of Oh Dae-su and his search for answers and justice following his imprisonment of 15 years in a mysterious private prison. We discuss what the film has to say about loss of community, the carceral system, and how capitalism creates a society that functions as a prison as surely as a cell door and barbed wire does. Left of the Projector Linkshttps://boxd.it/5T9O1https://leftoftheprojectorpod.threadless.com/https://www.instagram.com/the_red_gobbo/https://www.instagram.com/millennialmarxist1/https://leftoftheprojector.com

We discuss the newest Knives Out mystery in a new Home Box Office Drop! Directed, and written by Rian Johnson, the newest entry in the Knives Out franchise of course features Daniel Crain returning as Benoit Blanc, alongside Josh O'Connor, Josh Brolin, Glenn Close, Kerry Washington, Cailey Spaeny, Thomas Hayden Church, Daryl McCormack, Jeremy Renner, and Mila Kunis. In this episode we talk about Marx's theory on alienation under capitalism (a favorite topic of late), the marriage between the western Christian church and capitalism, the slow burn that is Knives Out, and how Benoit Blanc falls outside of the police and capital partnership and is thus excluded from the fact that ALL cops are in fact bastards. Left of the Projector Linkshttps://boxd.it/5T9O1https://leftoftheprojectorpod.threadless.com/https://www.instagram.com/the_red_gobbo/https://www.instagram.com/millennialmarxist1/https://leftoftheprojector.com

Number 2 in our Gareth Edward series! Following his directorial debut with "Monsters" (see episode 210!) Edwards was brought on to breathe new life into the king of all monsters with Legendary Entertainment's "Godzilla!" Using the skills he honed with "Monsters," Edwards creates a tense monster movie starring the greatest monster of cinema history (according to one host at least). We discuss the claims that this film glorifies the US military, the contrast between Legednary's version of Godzilla versus Toho Studio's, one of us admits to crying in the movie theatre when Godzilla uses his atomic blast for the first time in the movie, and Ward challenges Edwards again to come on the show and tell us to our faces whether he is intentionally making anti imperialist films that portray the US and capitalism as the villain or if it is all just coincidence. Left of the Projector Linkshttps://boxd.it/5T9O1https://leftoftheprojectorpod.threadless.com/https://www.instagram.com/the_red_gobbo/https://www.instagram.com/millennialmarxist1/https://leftoftheprojector.com

We close out the holiday season with one of the all time greats, The Muppet Christmas Carol. Joining us is friend of the show Jackie; a librarian, Muppet aficionado, and the wife who fuels the revolutionary love of one of our hosts (it's the host that name drops his wife more than he does Marx or Lenin). Widely recognized as one of the most faithful adaptations of the Dickens' classic, the film stars Michael Caine as Scrooge, Gonzo the Great as Charles Dickens, Kermit the Frog as Bob Cratchit, and Rizzo the Rat as himself and was the first Muppet film directed by Jim Henson's son Brian Henson following the death of his father. We discuss the accuracy of the movie, the influences that led Dickens to write the story in the first place, what the story has to say about alienation, and how two Marleys is better than one amongst other things.Only two more sleeps 'til Christmas 2025, and here at Left of the Projector we wish for a world where all us meeces can have cheeses.**Cheeses in this case is a unified and liberated working class working towards fully automated luxury gay space communism. Obviously. Left of the Projector Linkshttps://boxd.it/5T9O1https://leftoftheprojectorpod.threadless.com/https://www.instagram.com/the_red_gobbo/https://www.instagram.com/millennialmarxist1/https://leftoftheprojector.com