By Billie Anderson, Ph.D. Candidate, Media Studies, Western University
This story contains spoilers about ‘Eddington,’ ‘Midsommar’ and ‘Hereditary.’
Ari Aster’s new film Eddington is a political satire set in a small American town, where a feud between Sheriff Joe Cross (Joaquin Phoenix) and Mayor Ted Garcia (Pedro Pascal) begins with disagreement over pandemic policy, but quickly escalates into a chaotic, paranoid power struggle. What starts as a clash of ego spirals into increasingly violent and absurd confrontations.
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By Tamara de Szegheo Lang, Adjunct Assistant Professor, Department of Film and Media, Queen's University, Ontario
Dan Vena, Continuing Adjunct Associate Professor, Film and Media, Queen's University, Ontario
“If coming out of the closet was really as much fun as it is for the sexually adventurous youths in Better Than Chocolate, then everybody would be doing it, even straight people.”
So wrote film critic Bruce Kirkland in his 1999 review of the lesbian romantic comedy by Canadian filmmaker Anne Wheeler.
Kirkland pointed out that real life for queer and trans community members was “tougher, harsher and nastier” than portrayed…
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By Hamza Tariq, PhD Student, Cognitive Psychology, University of Waterloo
When technological innovations are first launched, they disrupt engrained ways of doing things. But after a while, the discomfort and mistrust start to shift.
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By Melanie Prentice, Research Associate, University of British Columbia
Alyssa-Lois Gehman, Adjunct Professor, Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries, University of British Columbia
Drew Harvell, Professor of Marine Ecology, Cornell University
Grace Crandall, PhD Student in Aquatic and Fishery Sciences, University of Washington
Sea stars are vital to ocean ecosystems; however, a pathogen has been killing them in large numbers, rendering some species critically endangered.
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By Guest Contributor
The combination of Chinese engineering muscle and European finance is also a beneficial development for host countries. For Brussels, the gains are less clear.
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By Gerald Arhin, Research Fellow in the Political Economy of Climate Compatible Development , UCL
Pritish Behuria, Reader in Politics, Governance and Development, Global Development Institute, University of Manchester
Imagine running a business for over a century without knowing what’s in your warehouse. That’s essentially what many African countries are doing with their mineral wealth. Governments across the continent still have very little knowledge of what lies beneath their soil.
Between the 18th and 20th centuries, European colonial powers exploited African mineral wealth for their industrialisation. Post-independence, many African nations nationalised their mining sectors. International pressure led to privatisation in the 1980s. This weakened the motivation and capacity of governments to…
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By Mark Deng, McKenzie Postdoctoral Research Fellow, The University of Melbourne
South Sudan’s chief justice, Chan Reec Madut, was sacked in late May 2025 after more than 13 years on the bench. Madut leaves behind a legacy of inefficiency and accusations of judicial graft. But the sacking violated South Sudan’s 2011 transitional…
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By Reza Talebi
Tehran faces unprecedented thirst as Iran endures its worst drought in over a century-driven by indifference, policy failures, vanishing rivers, and a crumbling water system with no relief in sight.
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By Ian Parmeter, Research Scholar, Middle East Studies, Australian National University
From a strategy standpoint, Netanyahu’s decision to take over Gaza City makes little sense – nor does there appear to be a longer-term plan in place.
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By Gawie Botma, Associate Professor of Journalism, Stellenbosch University
The old dictum that the press promotes the views of those who own and support it was as true during slavery and apartheid as it is now.
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