Mia Madre and My Mother

Not long after I began university, my mum was diagnosed with breast cancer. Almost everyone has to one day deal with the mortality of their parents and, like almost everyone, I dealt with it terribly. I slid right into the ‘denial’ phase and never really left; rather than do the logical thing and try and…

God’s Pocket (2014)

“I don’t see nothin’ but what I’m lookin’ at.” This line – or variations thereof – is repeated in John Slattery’s God’s Pocket, as ordinary folk reassure one another that they have no interest in the other’s minor misdeeds. It’s also a reasonable description of my reaction to the film; it’s not bad, but it…