Despite its historical inaccuracies, Shagnick Bhattacharya has a good time with this historical action drama, led by an excellent Viola Davis
Colonialism
2021 Nobel Prize in literature
Abdulrazak Gurnah, winner of the 2021 Nobel Prize in literature, has surged to the top of bestseller lists. Catherine Nock reviews his latest novel, Afterlives, and discusses the impact of receiving such high critical acclaim.
Decolonising Hollywood: The White Saviour Narrative
Niamh Walsh discusses Hollywood’s problematic ‘white saviour narrative’ which upholds white supremacy and colonialist ideals.
A Watershed Moment?
Isabel Murray discusses how recent movements have the potential to rewrite Britain’s imperial history.
Africa: Continent at the Crossroads
Online Features Editor Bryan Knight reports on the recent political developments in Africa and assesses the threats faced by the continent. In 2013, Chinese President Xi Jinping announced an ambitious initiative that would revamp an ancient trade network that connected the Eastern world with the West. This ‘Belt and Road Initiative’, as it is commonly […]
Melania Trump: Fashion Faux Pas or Diplomatic Disaster?
Melania Trump shocks the world wearing a colonial helmet in Kenya. For her first major solo international trip, similarly to her predecessors, Melania Trump flew to the African continent. During 5 days she visited Ghana, Malawi, Kenya and Egypt with the objective to promote USAIDS projects. She also came with the intention of improving the […]
Post-Colonial Guilt: Macron Recognises French Torture
President Macron has officially recognised, on behalf of the French state, the crimes carried out during the seven-year Algerian war of independence. Macron, the first president to be born after the conflict lifted the veil on 56 years of denial. Macron chose to visit 87-year-old Josette Audin, the widow of Maurice Audin who was tortured […]
#ReclaimTheBindi
(originally published in Print May 2018) I want to first acknowledge that I know that this is a contentious debate. Normally, I can’t even say the words “cultural appropriation” without being shut down, accused of being a “social justice warrior perpetrating call-out culture”, whatever that’s supposed to mean. A calm, intellectual discussion about this “non-issue” […]
Tintin: behind the quiff
Donning a perpetually immaculate quiff of blond hair, a pair of perfectly creased plus fours and always accompanied by his alcoholic fox terrier, Snowy, Tintin needs no introduction. The brainchild of Belgian cartoonist Georges Remi under the pen name Hergé, Tintin has pinged around the world like a human pinball, foiling the dastardly plots of […]
Navigating cultural appropriation vs. appreciation
It is seemingly very easy to pooh-pooh accusations of cultural appropriation – especially in extreme cases – as overly-sensitive millennial outrage. Yet, it is a problem that clearly runs much deeper than the fashion statements or musical choices of the rich and famous. Each claim of appropriation is a reflection of hundreds of years of […]