Guy Howie reviews Beyond Caring, a new play by Alexander Zeldin, which portrays the conditions of workers in modern day, zero-hour Britain – a new normality where millions live a precarious existence, cut off from stable or even regular employment, a living wage and a union that can fight for them.
Eleanor Marx, daughter of the greatest political scientist in history, faced the formidable task of living up to her family name in the turbulent period during the birth of the organised labour movement in Britain. Ben Gliniecki reviews Rachel Holmes’ new biography Eleanor Marx – A Life, which impressively describes and analyses Eleanor’s achievements over her lifetime.
Capital in the 21st Century, by the French economist Thomas Piketty, has hit the stands and has been making waves in the national and international press, not least among economic commentators. John Pickard looks at Piketty’s work, which has caused a sensation amongst both the left and the right for its analysis of the inequalities under capitalism.
Owen Walsh of the Leeds Marxists reviews Channel 4’s series “New Worlds” – a period drama set during the time of King James II, which outlines the history of the years following the English Civil War and the settlement of European colonists in America – and analyses the ideas and driving forces behind the actions and events of the time.
With the awards season upon us in Hollywood, climaxing with the Oscars on 2nd March, Guy Howie of the UCLU Marxists reviews the front-runner for film of the year: “12 Years a Slave”, a harrowing depiction of slavery in the Southern states of America, based upon the true story of Solomon Northup, an educated free man who finds himself thrust into a brutal life of exploitation.
The recent death of Nelson Mandela happened to coincide with the release of Justin Chadwick’s biopic based on Mandela’s autobiography ‘A Long Walk To Freedom’, which is essentially a chronicling of events in Mandela’s life from his beginnings as a lawyer, up to his election to presidency in 1994. Ed Taylor of the Sheffield Marxists reviews this biographical film about the famous anti-Apartheid leader.
The publication in English of The Man Who Loved Dogs by the Cuban author, Leonardo Padura is a major literary and political event. Alan Woods reviews this excellent book, which covers the story of the assassination of Leon Trotsky from a unique and illuminating perspective.
Published in 1938, The Black Jacobins essentially opened up the serious study, not just of the Haitian Revolution, which created the first black state outside of Africa, but of the role of slaves as a revolutionary historical force. Owen Walsh of the Leeds Marxist society reviews CLR James’ masterpiece of Marxist historiography.
We publish here a review by Tom Trottier from Socialist Appeal USA, who discusses John Pickard’s recently released book “Behind the Myths” – an important and interesting read that provides a Marxist, materialist analysis of the origins of the world’s main three monotheistic religions: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.
Channel 4 aired a new TV show this Monday, “Skint”. Rather than giving a balanced account of life in austerity Britain, the show’s real aim and message was very clear. It was another attempt to paint benefit recipients in a wholly negative light, as part of the campaign to justify the vicious Tory attacks on living standards. Callum Stanland from Grimsby – a neighbouring town to Scunthorpe, where filming took place – reviews the show.
With his new film Django Unchained, Quentin Tarantino taps into the world of the Italian “Spaghetti” Westerns that flowed out of Europe from the mid-Sixties onwards. Felix Lighter reviews the latest offering from Tarantino and looks back at the history of the Western.
Tom Hooper’s lavish production of Les Misérables, the long-running West End musical, is as politically charged as it is sumptuously presented. The film tells the story of Jean Valjean, a convict sentenced to nineteen years of hard labour. His crime? Stealing a loaf of bread to feed his starving family.