Новости за 05.03.2018

Watching the Academy Awards last night was like sitting through an academic conference: The people may have been more attractive, but otherwise it was a predictable crush of virtue signaling, group-thinking, and self-congratulating, all congealing to deliver the least stirring three hours in recent pop culture memory.

Oscar weekend is finally over, and now that we no longer have to wait to see which films or which performances will end up decorated with what is perhaps the highest honor in the world of film, we may breathe freely, take a moment, and look at some of the great movie milestones, not all of which took home a statue. These great Jewish performances and films, if you will, are history’s winners, Oscar or not:

The Italian people wanted change, but they couldn’t agree on what kind of change they wanted. The results of the parliamentary elections which took place on Sunday will for sure shake the political landscape of the country, but it’s still unclear which direction they will lead it to.

When news broke of Prince William’s upcoming official visit to Israel, I was tempted to treat the news as I do all other dispatches concerning the royal family: By rolling my eyes, sighing softly, and wondering why these waxen wallydrags still managed to interest anyone but their unfortunate subjects. But the facts, as they so often do, began to chafe, and a rethinking of my position was in order. Even if, like me, you see the Windsors as a slightly less elegant version of the Kardashians, the visit is still one you should contemplate... Читать дальше...

The weeklong commemorative events honoring the fourth anniversary of the Ukrainian Maidan revolution wound down late last month in Kyiv. Between February 18th and 21st, 2014, the “Berkut” special security services killed almost a hundred protesters in the center of city, precipitating the collapse of the presidency of Viktor Yanukovich. Four years later, any semblance of legal redress for the killing continues to stall, withholding emotional closure for both the society and the families of the murdered. Читать дальше...

Late last month, Kevin Smith, patron saint of bearded nerds everywhere, suffered a massive heart attack. Thankfully, he survived, and, lying in his hospital bed, passed the time by sharing a photo of himself on Twitter, looking bewildered but happy to be alive. The actor Chris Pratt responded with kind words. “Kevin” he wrote, “we don’t know each other too good but I have loved you since Clerks and I’m praying my ass off for your cause I believe in the healing power of prayer. Can you please pray with me people!?” Attached were two emojis... Читать дальше...

In the Polish city of Wroclaw, a cemetery lies at the center of a question about how to preserve its Jewish cultural heritage.

Roy Assaf has difficulty sitting still. During a recent interview at a café, he would often rise out of his chair, whirl around in a quick turn, and undulate his arms and wrists while gesticulating to express the ideas that his words could not.