If photographers can mythologize events, buildings and locations with a stunning composition or lighting design, it's become the duty of so many documentarians to mythologize their subjects with the correct talking heads and editing of material to tout their subjects as godheads. That's nearly the case with Eric Bricker's documentary about Julius Shulman, the commercial photographer responsible for many of the iconic photographs of Modern architecture that even most lay people remember from magazine spreads.At times the film teeters on becoming a real estate agent's dream advertising tool, but luckily Shulman is such an interesting character in the influence he wielded in Modern architecture's ability to flourish in America that all the gushy conversations with architects and academics actually seem merited. Read more

WE ARE IN A DIRE SITUATION. We are at a crossroads. We are living in an unprecedented era. We must do something now. If you believe all the pronouncements, proselytizing and punditry (and the requisite media hype), then we are undergoing an extraordinary shift in the way in which Americans will live their lives, as well as a renewal of faith in our politicians to do something about it—which means it’s a perfect opportunity for agitprop and activism to take hold yet again. At least that seems to be the argument from a recent upsurge in politically minded documentaries that seek to rouse a lazy populace once content to shop away all fears—both foreign and domestic. Read more Read it in print

A fellow editor once counseled me to get rid of our controversial film critic Armond White and replace him with anyone writing review blurbs on Netflix. Theyre usually pretty good, he said. And they make a lot more sense. Read more Read it in print

When we experience art, it’s usually in a sterile white box or under the weighty auspices of some superlative institution. Perhaps that’s why it’s so jarring, and satisfying, to be allowed into Herb and Dorothy Vogels’ one-bedroom Manhattan apartment, which is crammed with paintings, drawings, sculptures and other conceptual works by name-brand artists. In Megumi Sasaki’s documentary of two of the most important and unusual art collectors of the 20th century, we’re invited to familiarize ourselves with art in an entirely new way. Read more

Milton Glaser, the designer and artist, has shaped our perception of modern New York City more than any other single individual. Yes, he’s the man behind the simple, yet effectual, I ♥ NY campaign from the 1970s, but he’s also responsible for countless other brand identities and was the co-founder of New York magazine with Clay Felker (they owe him for that iconic logo). Unfortunately, the portrait first-time director Wendy Keys paints of the 80-year-old is more about myth building than anything else. Read more

It shouldn't have worked.When the construction began in the cavernous former Scopa restaurant space on Madison Avenue, we thought it was surely doomed.Who invests that kind of money these days to open a restaurant without a TV star chef or a brand name to back it up? When Pranna finally opened in the fall of 2008, right at the beginning of what is now acknowledged as one of the worst economic troubles ever, we decided to begin to taking wagers on when it would close. Read more Read it in print

Yoga is one of the most misunderstood and confusing of modern self-improvement developments of the past 50 years. Those who practice some form of hatha yoga (which I count myself amongst them) know the glazed look when beginning to explain the benefits and pleasures of stretching and breathing and sweating with likeminded people for hours. Although many yogis trace it back to ancient Indian gurus, it’s also a multi-billion dollar American industry with few roots in tradition. Is it exercise? Is it religion? Is it a cult? Is it bogus? Due to all of the confusion, documentarian Kate Churchill decided it was ripe for investigation. Read more

HOW MUCH DO YOU MAKE? It may be the most taboo question left in our society. And in New York City, where we discuss rents and religion with aplomb, the subject of money still freaks people out. While I’ve often been at a dinner party amongst friends and strangers and unraveled intricate sex stories, the thought of revealing my salary seems too illicit for public discourse. Read more

Now that the tide of foams and molecular cooking has receded—perhaps to be lumped in with other earlier 21stcentury excesses—we are witnessing a return to hearty, traditional meals with stick-to-yourribs appeal. It’s one reason why comfort food from the Iberian Peninsula should be embraced; they offer simple, bountiful sustenance without falling into the gastronomic no-go zone of processed and preserved. Read more Read it in print

It’s a toss up as to whether Race Plays or Holocaust Plays are the favorite genre for guilty liberals to enjoy these days. After the election of Obama, many of the narratives that fed aging activists and wannabe Lefties’ egos now feel impossibly out of date. It’s the feeling I had during Tracy Scott Wilson’s The Good Negro at The Public. Too bad, because the idea of the superlative minority figure that must rise against all stereotypes to prove himself should be questioned during the hyperbolic ascendency of Obama as president—and it’s impossible not to think of Obama while watching the Good Negro. Read more