#Wag the Dog

[afieldinengland]

wag the dog (1997), dir. barry levinson

#wag the dog

[randomberlinchick]

The People's Republic of China | United States Trade Representative

Not even taking into account how much US debt China holds (currently 870 billion dollars) and concentrating strictly on trade, I'm not sure why some politicians are so comfortable with the "enemy" rhetoric. Pay off the debt and manufacture/assemble your own products, then you can talk shit. Or as my mom used to say, "Don't let your mouth write a check your ass can't cash."

But we all know how this story will play out: the debt ceiling will likely be raised, as the alternative would create havoc in global financial markets. For more see this article in Foreign Policy.

#us china #foreign policy #us debt #us treasury #us china trade #makes me wonder what all that balloon shit is really about #wag the dog

[xenagabrielleforever]

Anne Heche RIP

#Anne Heche #Donnie Brasco #Volcano #Wag the Dog #Six Days Seven nights #John Q #Ally McBeal #Men in Trees

[mad-prophet-of-the-airwaves]

Rest in peace, Anne Heche (1969-2022).

#anne heche #rest in peace #donnie brasco #volcano #wag the dog #six days seven nights #gracie's choice

[sharkchunks]

Wag the Dog (1997, Barry Levinson)

#wag the dog #dustin hoffman #barry levinson #moby dick #cinema

[josefksays]

#Wag the Dog #Dustin Hoffman #quotes #Stanley Motss

[captaincolossal]

Okay, tonight is another one that I saw a lot when I was younger, and remember basically nothing about. Another one that I suspect I knew was funny, but I definitely didn't get the humor, you know? (You know how when you're like under the age of 16 and you get humor but sometime you don't get humor? I also didn't understand basic jokes for a long time and apparently told the most abstract, unhinged jokes as a kid.)

Anyway, 90s political satire!

Wag the Dog (1997)

"Never change horses in midstream" like what the fuck, that is such a bland and ultimately meaningless expression. (But I mean, that's the slogan to re-elect the president, so yeah it works as an "eh, why not more of the same?" thing.)

#wag the dog #movie funtime

[futurebird]

You really don't want to know how much was spent looking for "the antifa" when Trump was in office... but you should know anyways.

Great article from Gizmodo. Basically, a lot of time and money was spent trying to prove that "antifa" was a real thing and a real threat ... mostly to make Trump look good for his election. The waste is bad... the human rights violations are worse. This isn't covered in the article, but there are still outstanding questions about the people snatched and put in to vans during the Portland anti-racism protests. Let's not let it all be forgotten.

#us politics #antifa #antifacism #black lives matter #blm #portland protests #wag the dog

[now-watching]

Recommendations 71-75:

71. GOOD NIGHT, AND GOOD LUCK. (2005), dir. George Clooney

“THEY TOOK ON THE GOVERNMENT WITH NOTHING BUT THE TRUTH.

The story of journalist Edward R. Murrow’s stand against Senator Joseph McCarthy’s anti-communist witch-hunts in the early 1950s.”

Availability: Can be rented via YouTube, AppleTV, VUDU, GooglePlay, and Amazon.

72. AMISTAD (1997), dir. Steven Spielberg

“FREEDOM IS NOT GIVEN. IT IS OUR RIGHT AT BIRTH. BUT THERE ARE SOME MOMENTS WHEN IT MUST BE TAKEN.

In 1839, the slave ship Amistad set sail from Cuba to America. During the long trip, Cinque leads the slaves in an unprecedented uprising. They are then held prisoner in Connecticut, and their release becomes the subject of heated debate. Freed slave Theodore Joadson wants Cinque and the others exonerated and recruits property lawyer Roger Baldwin to help his case. Eventually, John Quincy Adams also becomes an ally.”

Availability: Available for rental on GooglePlay, VUDU, Amazon, AppleTV, and YouTube. 

73. WAG THE DOG (1997), dir. Barry Levinson

“A COMEDY ABOUT TRUTH, JUSTICE AND OTHER SPECIAL EFFECTS.

During the final weeks of a presidential race, the President is accused of sexual misconduct. To distract the public until the election, the President’s adviser hires a Hollywood producer to help him stage a fake war.”

Availability: Available for rental on GooglePlay, VUDU, Amazon, AppleTV, and YouTube. 

74. JESUS CAMP (2006), dir. Heidi Ewing, Rachel Grady

“AMERICA IS BEING BORN AGAIN.

A growing number of Evangelical Christians believe there is a revival underway in America that requires Christian youth to assume leadership roles in advocating the causes of their religious movement. Jesus Camp follows children at a Christian summer camp as they hone their “prophetic gifts” and are schooled in how to “take back America for Christ.” The film is a first-ever look into an intense training ground that recruits born-again Christian children to become an active part of America’s political future.”

Availability: Possibly available on Kanopy and available for free on YouTube, Hoopla (with a free account), PlutoTV, and Tubi. 

75. AN AMERICAN TAIL (1986), dir. Don Bluth

“MEET FIEVEL. IN HIS SEARCH TO FIND HIS FAMILY, HE DISCOVERED AMERICA. 

A young mouse named Fievel and his family decide to migrate to America, a “land without cats,” at the turn of the 20th century. But somehow, Fievel ends up in the New World alone and must fend off not only the felines he never thought he’d have to deal with again but also the loneliness of being away from home.”

Availability: Available on Starz with a subscription and Hulu, The Roku Channel, and Amazon with an add-on Starz subscription. Can also be rented via YouTube, GooglePlay, AppleTV, and VUDU.

[The American Experience Film Recs]

#Film #Good Night and Good Luck #Amistad #Wag the Dog #Jesus Camp #An American Tail #George Clooney #David Strathairn #Jeff Daniels #Edward R. Murrow #McCarthyism #Alex Borstein #Patricia Clarkson #Robert Downey Jr. #Steven Spielberg #Morgan Freeman #Nigel Hawthorne #Anthony Hopkins #Djimon Hounsou #Matthew McConaughey #Stellan skarsgard #Anna Paquin #Chiwetel Ejiofor #Peter Firth #Jeremy Northam #Barry Levinson #Dustin Hoffman #Robert De Niro #Anne Heche #Woody Harrelson

[daughterofdessalines]

Imagine being a whole adult & believing that the U.S. is “fighting for freedom”….

#ukraine #more money for Ukraine #🇺🇦 #wag the dog #america was never great #biden administration #afghanistan #twitter

[greensparty]

RIP Olivia Newton John, John Eastman, Anne Heche, Robin Griggs, and Denise Dowse

I was out sick last week and missed a bunch of celebrity deaths. Here is my combined remembrance:

Remembering Olivia Newton-John 1948-2022

Newton-John in Grease

Singer/actress Olivia Newton-John has died at 73. She was already established as a pop singer in the 70s when she was cast as Sandy in the 1978 film adaptation of Grease. It is one of the great nostalgic musicals of all time and Newton-John and co-star John Travolta made this timeless. She and Travolta reunited a few more times. It needs to be added that her version of “Over the Rainbow” appeared in John Woo’s Face/Off, one of Travolta’s best performances. But I digress. They teamed up for a Christmas album in 2012 as well.

The soundtrack to Grease was a massive hit. I got the vinyl in my collection. There are some pop standards on this and her songs are among the highlights. Her 1981 song “Physical” was one of the biggest hit songs of the 80s, spending 10 weeks at #1 and Billboard named it #1 of the 1980s. I remember her video for “Soul Kiss” in 1985 too.

The link above is the obit from CNN.

Remembering John Eastman 1939-2022

Eastman and McCartney

Entertainment lawyer John Eastman has died at 83. He was the older brother of Linda McCartney. When Paul McCartney married Linda in 1969, John and his father Lee began representing Paul after The Beatles break-up. Paul recently paid tribute to his brother-in-law online.

The link above is the obit from People.

Remembering Anne Heche 1969-2022

Heche being held by the cast of Cedar Rapids

Sad news that about a week after a terrible car accident, actress Anne Heche has died at 53. She got a lot of attention in the 90s for being Ellen DeGeneres’s girlfriend during the time that she came out. But Heche was actually a good supporting actress. Notable performances include Walking and Talking,  Donnie Brasco, I Know What You Did Last Summer, Wag the Dog, Gus Van Sant’s remake of Psycho, the criminally underrated comedy Cedar Rapids, and Rampart. 

Shortly before I was an intern for Ted Demme (I was a location intern on Monument Ave and at his production company Spanky Pictures), Ted directed Anne in the “Manhattan Miracle” segment of the HBO anthology film SUBWAYStories: Tales from the Underground. It was almost a silent film, when Gregory Hines sees Anne on the opposite subway platform. Great segment of an underrated film!

The link above is the obit from CNN.

Remembering Robin Griggs 1973-2022

Griggs

Soap opera actress Robin Griggs has died at 49. I was not too familiar with her films, TV shows or soaps, but what got my attention about her is that she got her start as a teen on the Nickelodeon movie review show Rated K: For Kids by Kids.  I was into it at the very moment I was getting into movies and watching Siskel & Ebert, it was tweens and teens talking about movies in a way you could relate. I sent in fan letters and even hoped to get on the show as a critic one day. Once in a while I got a postcard back thanking me and one time I even was told my fan letter was selected in a contest and I won sneakers! I don’t really remember Robin on the show, so I think she was on the show in the very beginning.

The link above is the obit from People.

Remembering Denise Dowse 1958-2022

Dowse as Tyrone’s Mother in Requiem for a Dream

Actress Denise Dowse has died at 64. She actually got her start as an FBI agent in a 1989 episode of ALF. Also worth noting that she appeared in two separate episode of in Seinfeld 1992 and 1994. Her biggest role was as Ms. Teasley  Beverly Hills, 90210 on from 1990 to 2000. Other notable roles include Requiem for a Dream and Ray.

The link above is the obit from Deadline. 

#rip #olivia newton-john #grease #john eastman #paul mccartney #linda mccartney #anne heche #donnie brasco #i know what you did last summer #wag the dog #psycho #cedar rapids #subway stories #ted demme #robin griggs #rated k #denise dowse #alf #beverly hills 90210 #seinfeld #requiem for a dream #ray #film geek #tv #music nerd

[afieldinengland]

they're war slogans. we remember the slogans, we can't even remember the fucking wars. you know why? that's show business.

#wag the dog #wag the dog 1997 #barry levinson #my edit

[tacosransi]

one cannot resist moth wife

#is goji a cat? a dog? who knows #i just like drawing his tail wagging whenever he sees mothra #i cant think of a dog that acts like a cat #chihuahuas maybe… #my art #digitalart #kaiju #monsterverse #godzilla #mothra #mothzilla #mosugoji #godzilla x kong: the new empire #the more i draw mothra the longer her antennas get

[immaculatasknight]

Chained creativity

#Hollywood #military #CIA #narrative control #propaganda #Nazi #psychological operations #social engineering #censorship #wag the dog

[mad-prophet-of-the-airwaves]

Wag the Dog (1997, Barry Levinson, USA)

#wag the dog #barry levinson

[chappelroans]

to love like a dog

ada limón, roadside attractions with the dogs of america // emily wilson, the odyssey // u.k // andrew kane, how to be a dog // mitski, i’m your man // u.k // u.k

#web weaving #webweaving #dogs #on dogs #on love #quotes #i don’t want this! i don’t want to love like a dog! i don’t want to love by devotion regardless of care! #i don’t want to pull on my chain when they come back! i don’t want to wag my tail even though they haven’t fed me in weeks!