I have chosen film, cinema, in my work in order to theorize difficult questions

I have chosen film, cinema, in my work in order to theorize difficult questions regarding democracy and difference. There are, however, many points of caution in choosing to use film. Films often can reinforce and affirm stereotyped and demeaning images of others; that is, film is as effective a tool for installing as it is for challenging and overcoming oppression. However, as I write in Chapter One, the fictionalized realism of film can allow for a sharing of the different experiences that individuals live through and can serve as a helpful tool to uncover the raw materials that make up our various social or cultural identities. In other words, and more specifically, film and film criticism facilitate the search for a location from which to envision a democratic politics in ways that are respectful of difference and that quite possibly can contribute to the transformation of one’s sensibilities by providing an opportunity to theorize and imagine a new or emerging politics from a position of eyewitness.
Identify two-feature length films not presented in class that you believe have the potential to transform one’s political sensibilities pertaining to deep differences. In addition to naming your recommendations, be sure to give a full citation and a short abstract for each of the two films you recommend.
In other words, students are to recommend two U.S. films (non-documentaries produced in the United States of America) within the past five years and that are not listed anywhere on the political science 1 course syllabus. Proper citations must follow this format: Film title. Dir. First Name Last Name. Distributor, Year of Release. Medium. Films excluded: Required Film Texts:
Barbie, 2023; Directed by Gerta Gerwig
Beach Rats, 2017; Directed by Eliza Hittman
Boys Don’t Cry, 1998; Directed by Kimberly Pierce
Boyz ‘N the Hood, 1991; Directed by John Singleton
Call Me By Your Name, 2017; Directed by Luca Quadagnino
Cesar Chavez: An American Hero, 2014; Directed by Diego Luna
Do the Right Thing, 1989; Directed by Spike Lee
Get Out, 2017; Directed by Jordan Peele
Loving, 2016; Directed by Jeff Nichols
Milk, 2008; Directed by Gus Van Sant
Moonlight, 2016; Directed by Barry Jenkins
My Own Private Idaho, 1991; Directed by Gus Van Sant
Selma, 2014; Directed by Ava DuVernay
Smoke Signals, 1998; Directed by Chris Eyre
Stonewall: Where Pride Began, 2015; Directed by Roland Emmerich
Straight Outta Compton, 2015; Directed by F. Gary Gray
The Birth of a Nation, 2016; Directed by Nate Parker
Twelve Years a Slave, 2013; Directed by Steve McQueen
*13th, 2016; Directed by Ava DuVernay
A Place of Rage, 1991; Directed by Pratibha Parmar
America in Black & White: A Question of Identity, 2003; Films for Humanities and Science
A Family Portrait, 2011; Directed by Melissa Leu and Jeff Haig (Student Film)
Cultural Criticism & Transformation, 1997; Featuring bell hooks and Directed by Sut Jhally
Ethnic Notions, 1986; Directed by Marlon Riggs
Exploring Society: Gender, 2005
Exploring Society: Race and Ethnicity, 2005
Exploring Society: Social Class, 2008
Further Off the Straight and Narrow: New Gay Visibility on Television, 2006; Katherine Sender
Generation M: Misogyny in Media and Culture, 2013; Directed by Thomas Keith
How Racism Harms White America, 2013; Directed by John Bracey
*I Am Not Your Negro, 2016; Directed by Raoul Peck
Latinos Beyond Reel: Challenging a Media Stereotype, 2012
Off the Straight and Narrow: Lesbians, Gays, Bisexuals & Television, 1998
On White Privilege, 2008; Featuring Tim Wise
Reel Bad Arabs: How Hollywood Vilifies a People, 2006; Directed by Sut Jhally
Responding to Diversity; 2011; Directed by Rise Sanders Weir and Tracy Ullman
Soundtrack for a Revolution, 2009; Directed by Bill Guttentag
The Brandon Teena Story, 1998; Directed by Susan Muska and Greta Olafsdottir
The Bro Code: How Contemporary Culture Creates Sexist Men, 2011; Directed by Thomas Keith
*The Celluloid Closet, 1995; Directed by Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman
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The Empathy Gap: Masculinity & The Courage to Change, 2015; Directed by Thomas Keith
The Origins of Cultural Studies, 1989; Featuring Stuart Hall
*The Times of Harvey Milk, 1984; Directed by Rob Epstein
White Like Me, 2013; Featuring Tim Wise and Directed by S. Morris