The Pope and Mussolini
Reading David Kertzer’s The Pope and Mussolini:The Secret History of Pius XI and the Rise of Fascism in Europe will be a …
Category Archives: War
Birdsong: A Novel of Love and War
If you’ve never read anything about life in the trenches during World War One, Birdsong: A Novel of Love and …
Xiao Hong — Women in Rural China
Some months ago I saw The Golden Era, a recent movie by Ann Hui about a ground breaking Chinese woman writer …
Restrepo — Documenting Soldiers In A War
Hand-held verisimo video has been much in the news lately, bringing, at long last a change in perception about the reality …
1,000 Times Goodnight – a Film about Temptations (of death)
I am a great admirer of Juliet Binoche, as many movie goers are; if she’s in a film I’ll go out of …
The Canal Bridge — Irishmen in WW I
The Great War: A Photographic Narrative
Photography in this day of iPhone snaps and YouTube video is such a part of the fabric of the world …
The First Casualty – A WW I Conscientious Objector as Sleuth
Ben Elton’s 2012 mystery, The First Casualty, is a fine combination of two popular literary genres: men at war and …
Oh What a Lovely War! — Irony and WW I
When Richard Attenborough’s movie, Oh What A Lovely War! appeared in October, 1969 I didn’t see it. Regardless of his …
American Sniper: A Veteran Has His Say
From Waging Nonviolence via Salon,an excellent look at American Sniper, its protagonist and the culture that creates him. Chris Kyle …
Parade’s End — Benedict Cumberbatch as England’s Last Tory
The 5 hour HBO/BBC mini-series, Parade’s End, (2012) with Benedict Cumberbatch as Christopher Tietjens, is a miracle of lossless compression, …
The Comedy of Charleroi – Courage and Cowardice in WW I
“The captain … was due to retire in October. In the very first burst of fire he was swept out …