#Robert Kolker

[letterboxd-loggd]

Theodora Goes Wild (1936) Richard Boleslawski

December 8th 2022

[longreads]

There is a noise that, for a Navy captain, may well be the worst sound imaginable—worse than the boom of cannon fire, the whistle of a missile, or the whoosh of a torpedo. That noise is the long, piercing scrape of metal against rock. It’s the sound, quite simply, of everything going wrong.

The latest Atavist Magazine story by Robert Kolker recounts how a a wrong turn led to the largest peacetime disaster in American naval history. Read an excerpt on Longreads now.

[brokehorrorfan]

Taxi Driver will be released on Steelbook 4K UHD (with Blu-ray and Digital) on June 25 via Sony. The influential 1976 neo-noir psychological thriller is directed by Martin Scorsese.

Robert De Niro stars with Jodie Foster, Albert Brooks, Harvey Keitel, Leonard Harris, Peter Boyle, and Cybill Shepherd. Paul Schrader (Raging Bull) wrote the script.

Taxi Driver has been restored in 4K from the original camera negative with Dolby Vision. Special features are listed below, where you can also see the full Steelbook art.

Disc 1 - 4K UHD:

Making Taxi Driver - 1999 documentary

Storyboard-to-film comparisons with Martin Scorsese introduction

Photo galleries

20th anniversary trailer

Disc 2 - Blu-ray:

Audio commentary by director Martin Scorsese and writer Paul Schrader

Audio commentary by writer Paul Schrader

Audio commentary by film historian Professor Robert Kolker

2016 Tribeca Film Festival Q&A with Martin Scorsese, Robert De Niro, Jodie Foster, and more

Commentary with Recorded by the Criterion Collection Commentaries by Writer Paul Schrader and by

Martin Scorsese on Taxi Driver

Influence and Appreciation: A Martin Scorsese Tribute

Producing Taxi Driver

God's Lonely Man

Taxi Driver Stories

Travis' New York

Travis' New York Locations

Theatrical trailer

A psychotic New York cabby is driven to violence in an attempt to rescue a teenage prostitute.

Pre-order Taxi Driver.

[courseyoulovemeyoudontknowme]

Taxi Driver (1976, Martin Scorsese)

28/01/2024

Taxi Driver is a 1976 film directed by Martin Scorsese, written by Paul Schrader and starring Robert De Niro. Set after the Vietnam War in New York, it is about a vigilante with neo-noir and psychological detective elements.

The screenwriter Paul Schrader stated that he was inspired for the film's themes by European existentialism and in particular by Jean-Paul Sartre's Nausea and Albert Camus' The Stranger, as well as by the story of Arthur Bremer, who attempted in 1972 to assassinate Democratic US presidential candidate George Wallace. Particularly notable is the performance of Robert De Niro, defined by the American journalist Robert Kolker as "the last of the noir heroes in the noisiest world imaginable". The very young Jodie Foster won two BAFTAs in 1977 as Best New Actress and Best Supporting Actress (also for Bugsy Malone).

The film won the Palme d'Or at the 29th Cannes Film Festival in 1976 and was nominated for four Academy Awards, including the Best Film category in 1977. The American Film Institute placed it 52nd among the 100 best films of all time, while it ranked 17th on the list of the 500 best films in history according to the British magazine Empire. In 2012 it was placed in 31st place, ex aequo with The Godfather - Part II, in the ranking of the best films of all time drawn up by critics and published by the English magazine Sight and Sound, while in that drawn up by directors it found itself in fifth place. In 1994 it was chosen for preservation in the National Film Registry of the United States Library of Congress.

[noone6252]

You can't go around fear - (…) - You have to break through it. Robert Kolker, In the Dark Valley.

inspiration.

[byneddiedingo]

Leslie Howard and Norma Shearer in Romeo and Juliet (George Cukor, 1936)

Cast: Norma Shearer, Leslie Howard, John Barrymore, Edna May Oliver, Basil Rathbone, C. Aubrey Smith, Andy Devine, Conway Tearle, Ralph Forbes, Henry Kolker. Screenplay: Talbot Jennings, based on a play by William Shakespeare. Cinematography: William H. Daniels. Art direction: Cedric Gibbons, Frederic Hope, Oliver Messel, Edwin B. Willis. Film editing: Margaret Booth. Music: Herbert Stothart.

If Shakespeare's Juliet could be played, as it was in its first performances, by a boy, then why shouldn't she be played by 34-year-old Norma Shearer? Truth be told, I don't find Shearer's performance that bad: She lightens her voice effectively and her girlish manner never gets too coy. It also helps that William H. Daniels photographs her through filters that soften the signs of aging: She looks maybe five years younger than her actual age, if not the 20 years younger that the play's Juliet is supposed to be. I'm more bothered by the balding 43-year-old Leslie Howard as her Romeo, though he had the theatrical training that makes the verse sound convincing in his delivery. And then there's the 54-year-old John Barrymore as Mercutio, who could be Romeo's fey uncle but not his contemporary. In fact, Barrymore's over-the-top performance almost makes this version of the play a must-see -- we miss him more than we do most Mercutios after his death. Edna May Oliver's turn as Juliet's Nurse is enjoyable, if a bit of a surprise: She usually played eccentric spinsters like Aunt Betsy Trotwood in David Copperfield (George Cukor, 1935) or sour dowagers like Lady Catherine de Bourgh in Pride and Prejudice (Robert Z. Leonard, 1940). In the play, the Nurse rarely speaks without risqué double-entendres, but most of them have been cut in Talbot Jennings's adaptation, thus avoiding the ridiculous spectacle of Shakespeare being subjected to the Production Code censors. (Somehow the studio managed to slip in Mercutio's line, "the bawdy hand of the dial is now upon the prick of noon.") Some of the other pleasures of the film are camp ones, such as Agnes deMille's choreography for the ball, along with the costume designs by Oliver Messel and Adrian, which evoke early 20th-century illustrators like Walter Crane or Maxfield Parrish. No, this Romeo and Juliet won't do, except as a representation of how Shakespeare's play was seen at a particular time and place: a Hollywood film studio in the heyday of the star system. In that respect, it's invaluable.

[microcomets]

2, 11, and 17 for the end of year books!

2. Did you reread anything? What?

i did not reread anything this year! i was a compulsive re-reader as a kid, but i don't tend to do rereads now because i always prefer to read new stuff.

11. What was your favorite book that has been out for a while, but you just now read?

honestly, the earthsea cycle by ursula k. le guin! i read the first two this year (the rest are on my tbr!), as well as THE LEFT HAND OF DARKNESS, and they were all so good.

17. Did any books surprise you with how good they were?

honestly, i've never been a huge nonfiction reader because i usually prefer fiction, but i've gotten much more into nf + memoirs this year which has surprised me! some of the best nonfiction books i read were:

SAY NOTHING by patrick radden keefe, about the troubles in northern ireland

HIDDEN VALLEY ROAD by robert kolker, about a troubled family who helped define schizophrenia research in the u.s.

WHITE TEARS/BROWN SCARS by ruby hamad, about white feminism

CATCH AND KILL by ronan farrow; about investigating & breaking the harvey weinstein story (+ related stories)

and i'm currently reading BRAIDING SWEETGRASS by robin wall kimmerer, about how indigenous wisdom relates to botany and science, which is excellent!

send me a book ask

[pierrotwrites-hc]

Pierrot! Do you have any book recs?

DO I. Yes I do.

Tana French. Everything she's ever written. Ditto Hilary Mantel and Mary Renault.

When Patricia Highsmith is good she is very very good, but when she's mediocre, don't bother.

Joseph Hansen wrote a truly excellent and unjustly forgotten noir series about a gay death claims investigator named Dave Brandstetter that I cannot recommend enough.

In the "recently read and quite enjoyed" category:

"New Life" by Tom Crewe

"Young Mungo" by Douglas Stuart

"The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet" by Becky Chambers

"Hidden Valley Road" by Robert Kolker

"The Wager" by David Grann

(The last two are nonfiction but move like thrillers.)

[writingandmybrain]

12.1.2023

4/100 days of productivity

Today was extremely busy. I had to take my mom to a PCP appointment so she could get some documentation for a grant done. Then we went to the food bank. I got about an hour of work done before I had therapy. After therapy I made lunch and took my dog to her vet appointment to get her nails clipped. When I got back, I made bacon cheeseburgers for dinner, cleaned up the kitchen, then went upstairs and finished my documentation from yesterday and sent a few emails. I don’t have it in me to work on anything for school. I plan to start waking up a little earlier (5:55am) to get a little more done in the day.

Goodnight world!

Home:

- Dinner/dishes

- Food bank/ Mom’s PCP appointment

Work:

- Emails

- Monthlies/daily notes

School:

Nothing/Nada/Ziltch

🎧: You’re Losing Me (From the Vault) by Taylor Swift

📖: Hidden Valley Road by Robert Kolker

[blamemma]

everything i read in feb & march :) three 5*'s i was either just in a really good mood or the books were just really that good (its the latter)

lanny, max porter - 5*

insatiable, daisy buchanan - 1*

native son, richard wright - 4*

hidden valley road, robert kolker - 5*

the eighth life, nino haratischvili - 5*

nightcrawling - 3*

[szyszkasosnowa]

I was tagged by @paulinaaam yaaay thank you!! <3

rules: tag nine people you want to get to know better

Three ships: Xeno/Stanley (Dr. Stone), Erwin/Levi (SnK), Fingon/Maedhros (Silmarillion)

First ever ship: uhhhhh I'm not sure, TenRose (Dr Who) maybe???

Last song/album is: Lost in Hollywood by SOAD (I was standing on the wall, feeling ten feet tall..)

Last movie: uh. oh no. Guardians of the Galaxy vol 3. Well if that's creme de la creme of current MCU I'm glad as hell I stopped watching.

Currently reading: Chłopki by Joanna Kuciel-Frydryszak, Hidden Valley Road by Robert Kolker, Ludowa Historia Polski by Adam Leszczyński. Also reading Chainsaw Man as it's published.

Currently watching: Better Call Saul, Yellowjackets, Dr Stone

Currently consuming: coffee

Currently craving: something cold, my room is turning into a greenhouse in the summer.

tagging: @drzewiej-niemota, @wistfulwizard, @megacarapa, @im-surviving-off-of-tea11

[bowerywilliam]

I have some nonfiction book recs!

1. The right to sex. Feminism in the 21st century (by Amia Srinivasan). This is a collection of profound and never-banal essays about feminism, power, culture, harassment, sex work, incels, and everything in between. The author offers an amazing sociological and philosophical view on the questions that feminism asks. She gives a lot of “definitive” answers (according to her pov, obviously) but she also asks quite a few questions which are left unanswered, and I found the balance to be really engaging

2. Hidden Valley Road. Inside the mind of an American family (by Robert Kolker). This is the (real) story of a family with twelve children, six of whom develop schizophrenia, during a time (the decades immediately following the II WW) in which this condition was still feared, misjudged, and treated in horrible ways. I love the fact that the book spends time both with the family and with science: the author tells the story of the children and their parents (up until the children themselves have become adults) and at the same time it tells the story of how the cures for schizophrenia have developed, and how the public very slowly learned how to deal with the condition in a way that’s respectful and graceful towards the people suffering from it. It’s such a powerful story about two parents at least initially (understandably) refusing to accept that anything was wrong and then slowly having to completely change their lives to help their children, and about their children and the radically different fates of those who get the disease and those who don’t. It’s such a great read!

I’m also currently reading “The color of law. A forgotten history of how our government segregated America” (by Richard Rothstein), which is about racist housing policies in the history of the US, and it’s amazing and illuminating albeit a bit more technical than the other two

thank you! i'm getting so many really good recommendations and can't wait to check them out when i get home later 💕

[hopbrewco]

Books at the Bar - Hidden Valley Road

Thank you to everyone who made it out to Books at the Bar last night to discuss "Dumplin'!" Our March selection is "Hidden Valley Road" by Robert Kolker. A limited number of copies are available for check out at the HCCPL Front Desk. Books at the Bar will next meet at 6 p.m. March 26 at Hopkinsville Brewing Comany, 102 E. Fifth St. For more information, call 270-887-4262.

[asecondglassofcinnamonwine]

January Reading

Read Count: 12 books Average Page Count: 462 pages/book Goodreads Unread Count: 443 books Owned Unread Count: 14 books

Books: *Bloodchild and Other Stories - Octavia E Butler The End of Eternity - Isaac Asimov *Jade City - Fonda Lee *Hidden Valley Road: Inside the Mind of an American Family - Robert Kolker The Source - James A Michener Ingathering: The Complete People Stories - Zenna Henderson Black Thorn, White Rose - edited by Ellen Datlow & Terri Windling Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke and Other Misfortunes - Eric LaRocca How Jesus Became God: The Exaltation of a Jewish Preacher from Galilee - Bart D Ehrman *Jade War - Fonda Lee Dragon Keeper - Robin Hobb Perfume: Story of a Murderer - Patrick Süskind

Finishing Series: 2 *Starred Reads: 4 Nonfiction: 2 Deep-Dive Author: 3

Genres: Fantasy: 4 Scifi: 3 Historical fiction: 2 Nonfiction - memoir: 1 Horror: 1 Nonfiction - religion: 1

Goals Not Accomplished: Dictionary of the Khazars (abandoned) Beach Music (reading now)

[lamanie-litera]

Donald, Jim, Brian, Joseph, Matthew, and Peter

Six of the Galvin boys took ill at a time when so little was understood about schizophrenia—and so many different theories were colliding with one another—that the search for an explanation overshadowed everything about their lives. They lived through the eras of institutionalization and shock therapy, the debates between psychotherapy versus medication, the needle-in-a-haystack search for genetic markers for the disease, and the profound disagreements about the cause and origin of the illness itself. There was nothing generic about how they each experienced the illness: Donald, Jim, Brian, Joseph, Matthew, and Peter each suffered differently, requiring differing treatments and a panoply of shifting diagnoses, and prompting conflicting theories about the nature of schizophrenia. Some of those theories could be especially cruel to the parents, who often took the blame, as if they’d caused the disease by something they did or did not do. The entire family’s struggle doubles as a thinly veiled history of the science of schizophrenia—a history that for decades took the form of a long argument over not just what caused the illness, but what it actually is.

(…)

Starting in the 1980s, the Galvin family became the subject of study by researchers on the hunt for a key to understanding schizophrenia. Their genetic material has been analyzed by the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, the National Institute of Mental Health, and more than one major pharmaceutical company. As with all such test subjects, their participation was always confidential. But now, after nearly four decades of research, the Galvin family’s contribution finally can be seen clearly. Samples of their genetic material have formed the cornerstone of research that has helped unlock our understanding of the disease. By analyzing this family’s DNA and comparing it with genetic samples from the general population, researchers are on the cusp of making significant advances in treatment, prediction, and even prevention of schizophrenia. Until recently, the Galvins were completely unaware of how they might be helping others—oblivious to how their situation had, among some researchers, created such a feeling of promise. But what science has learned from them is only one small portion of their story. That story begins with their parents, Mimi and Don, and a life together that took flight with limitless hope and confidence, only to curdle and collapse in tragedy, confusion, and despair.

(…)

What would progress look like for schizophrenia? If the Galvin boys had been born a half century later or more—growing up today, let’s say, and not in the 1950s or 1960s—would their treatment be any different now? In some respects, little has changed. The market for new schizophrenia drugs remains sluggish. Antipsychotic drugs require expensive and risky testing, even in the early trials, where rats are no substitute for humans. And the same nature-nurture squabbles over the source of the illness have continued, if at a more granular level. Where the conversation once was about Freud, now it’s about epigenetics—latent genes, activated by environmental triggers. Researchers now argue about what might be playing the part of a trigger—something ingested, like marijuana, or infectious, like bacteria? Researchers have come up with a variety of other suspects—head injuries, autoimmune diseases, brain-inflammation disorders, parasitic microbes—all of which have their adherents and detractors. Everyone still picks their horse on the merry-go-round, and very few are willing to stop taking the ride.

Robert Kolker, Hidden Valley Road: Inside the Mind of an American Family, 2020.