Cam, 2018 – ★★★

Madeline Brewer plays a camgirl whose account is taken over by her doppelganger. Written by a former camgirl, the portrayal of the daily grind of cam sexworkers is very well done, even when it takes a backseat to the supernatural elements. It’s also respectful of sex work, which, this being a horror film, one doesn’t expect. (Reading up on the production, they pretty much created a functioning website that Brewer played off of).

As some other reviewers have said, it doesn’t go far enough and leaves a lot of questions unanswered. Once Alice realizes what is happening, the film is in its final act. I wanted to like it even more than I did.

However, while so many digitally shot films are washed out and bland, Cam is a visual treat of secondary colors and cold blues.

(Also of note: so many of the actors are from other Netflix properties, and this film was funded by Netflix, when will Netflix admit it has contract actors like studios of yore?)

Vía Letterboxd – Ted Mills

Review: White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism

White fragility book

DiAngelo’s book is rather dry and academic, but it’s also important. Her day job is facilitating discussions on diversity in private companies, and through this she has realized her most difficult target: talking with white liberals about race. White folks get defensive, angry, and hurt when she points out that they, no matter how much they “don’t see race” or “have black friends” or “marched in the ’60s” still benefit from the racist/white supremacist system called American society. It’s so dominant in fact that it is invisible (to white people).

The book is at its best when DiAngelo tells stories about her various work sessions and encounters with actual “but, I’m not racist” people. There are moments where I’ve cringed where I recognized things I too have said in the (not so distant) past. The audience for the book might just be the kind of people who wouldn’t read it, or get defensive, but it’s essential that they try in these very racist times.

from Ted’s bookshelf

Buy it here