<h1>Darrel Manson</h1>

Darrel Manson

Posts by Darrel Manson:

H2: The Occupation Lab

H2: The Occupation Lab

May 9, 2024

The Israeli-Palestinian situation is obviously complex and often controversial. It has been an area of conflict for nearly a century—even before the establishment of the state of Israel. Documentary filmmakers Idit Avrahami and Noam Sheizaf seek to show the...

Stay with Us: A path between faiths

Stay with Us: A path between faiths

May 8, 2024

“I’m on a path.”  “It’s good to be on a path.” Gad Elmaleh’s Stay with Us takes us along a path the ponders the meaning of faith, identity, and community. The semi-autobiographical comedy is about a man with Sephardic Jewish roots who is contemplating converting...

Space: The Longest Goodbye

Space: The Longest Goodbye

May 4, 2024

The current goal is to send people to Mars within the next decade. That is certainly an ambitious and worthy undertaking. Want to be on that first three-year mission? Perhaps you should watch the Independent Lens documentary Space: The Longest Goodbye before you get...

Alam: Raising a flag of independence

Alam: Raising a flag of independence

Apr 26, 2024

“My dad used to say that the beginning of liberation is to raise your flag. The highest level of liberation is to burn it.” In Alam (The Flag), directed by Firas Khoury, we see Palestinian youth struggling with a world in which they have had no voice. It is not just...

We Grown Now: Homes and roots

We Grown Now: Homes and roots

Apr 18, 2024

”WE EXIST!” In the 1990s, the Cabrini-Green housing project in Chicago became a symbol of urban decay and danger. Yet for some it was the only home they knew. In We Grown Now, written and directed by Minhal Baig, we see this world through the eyes of two young boys...

On the Adamant: A healing community

On the Adamant: A healing community

Apr 17, 2024

People living with mental illness, may often feel isolated. In On the Adamant, from documentarian Nicolas Philibert, we see a refuge in the middle of Paris that attracts a people and provides a place of acceptance, dignity, and perhaps healing. The Adamant is a...

The Listener – A friend in need

The Listener – A friend in need

Mar 29, 2024

“Please, let it all out. That’s what I’m here for.” In The Listener, directed by Steve Buscemi, we eavesdrop on callers to an emotional support helpline. I view such services (and I have volunteered at one many years ago) as emotional first-aid. That is not meant to...

Yuni: A life out of season

Yuni: A life out of season

Mar 22, 2024

“How do I know what I want? But my future is not bleak.” Yuni, from Kamila Andini, is a coming-of-age story that deals with the conflict between personal aspirations and societal expectations. These are issues in nearly all cultures, but they seemed to be heightened...