[Tribeca] The Adderall Diaries and the Problem with the Brilliant Male Writer Cliche
I think it was Harlan Ellison who said that most people believe they're a better writer and a better fuck than everyone else. That succinctly describes the absurd narcissism at the heart of the male writer trope: he's ruggedly masculine and yet aesthetically sensitive, he's smart in a way that's worldly rather than academic—brilliant, really—he constantly struggles with writer's block until a divine spark of inspiration leads to the rapid production of undeniable genius, and everyone wants to have sex with him because he's really good at it—no, the best, actually.
The brilliant male writer cliche is ridiculous yet persistent, and these tropes make the adaptation of The Adderall Diaries starring James Franco feel so uninspired. I haven't read Stephen Elliott's memoir of the same name, though excerpts from the book strike such a different tone from the film. It's not just because the story's been moved from San Francisco to New York. While the source material seems like a genuine exploration of strained father-son relationships and the ways people remember and misremember, writer/director Pamela Romanowsky's movie comes across as sycophantic genuflection to the idea of the brilliant male writer.
[Trailer] Time Zero: The Last Year of Polaroid Film
[vimeo id="69832574"]
Polaroids, for a long time, were a huge part of American culture. The feeling of instant gratification of simply taking a photo and being able to share it in that moment was so profound. However, as technology advanced and the costs of producing film increased, something had to give. Unfortunately, The Polaroid Corporation had to shutter its doors in the late 2000s, with the end of Polaroid film taking place in 2008. With its closure came a scary notion: instant film, both as a medium and as a huge part of everyday social culture, was gone. It wasn't until 2010 that The Impossible Project took it upon themselves to save such an illustrious field by purchasing the last factory in the world that produced Polaroid film and began producing their own versions.
Time Zero: The Last Year of Polaroid Film is a documentary detailing the final year of Polaroid's existence and the community-driven push to keep Polaroid film alive. Broken into three acts, the documentary should be an informative and entertaining look at a piece of yesteryear's Americana that today's children may never experience, at least to the same level we did.
Time Zero: The Last Year of Polaroid Film is currently available on VOD and Netflix.