SUMMER CINEMA OF RESISTANCE
Fri 6/2–Sun 8/6 @ HARVARD FILM ARCHIVE

On his new song “Lust,” Kendrick Lamar paints a picture of what has been the reality for many Americans: “We all woke up, tryna tune to the daily news / Lookin’ for confirmation, hopin’ the election wasn’t true…Time passin’, things change / Revertin’ back to our daily programs, stuck in our ways.” The temptation to make like a hermit and seal ourselves away is strong, to ignore what’s happening around us and pretend that life is perfect. But as comedian Hari Kondabolu has tweeted every day of the Trump presidency: “THIS IS NOT NORMAL.” It’s a shame we need such reminders, but we do. Political complacency is as American as apple pie.

To help shake off this resistance fatigue, The Harvard Film Archive has graciously programmed a slate of films for this Summer of Trump, dubbed SUMMER CINEMA OF RESISTANCE. Per their press release: “These screenings will be designed to spark discussion, beginning in our theater directly after the screening. Whenever possible, we will have the filmmaker present; at other times, we may have a guest moderator—an activist, a historian or a community organizer.” Among the films screened will be Luis Valdez’ Zoot Suit, Spike Lee’s Do The Right Thing, and Jean Renoir’s Life is Ours.

—W. Logan Freeman