Ike Barinholtz is strikingly well-versed in an array of hot topics, exhibiting just as much enthusiasm discussing Rupaul’s Drag Race as he does politics, or talking about the classic films that inspired him as a first-time feature director.
“There’s this great old movie called Mrs. Miniver, really old,” says the actor. “I always loved that movie because it tricks you, where the first half [depicts] life in this pastoral English village [as] lovely, despite the war. And then it turns into the Nazis in the house.”
Barinholtz is in the nation’s capital to discuss The Oath, the pitch-black comic thriller he wrote, directed, and stars in opposite Tiffany Haddish. Set over a punishing Thanksgiving weekend when every American citizen is expected to sign an oath of loyalty to the president or face the consequences, The Oath, like Mrs. Miniver, takes a hard turn towards the intense. Inside the home of happily married couple Chris and Kai (Barinholtz and Haddish), all hell breaks loose when every member of their extended family can’t agree to disagree about signing the controversial oath.
The gloves come off, the fight gets ugly, and the violence threatens to go too far — though Barinholtz instinctively sensed how far to take things.
“We knew we were gonna have these really dark elements and violence and blood,” he says. “‘People should probably die,’ is what I was told…I resisted that urge because I wanted the movie — despite everything the people in the movie had been through and despite everything we’re going through now — to end optimistically. I am still optimistic about the country.”
In the film, that optimism runs along a knife’s edge juxtaposed against wild paranoia, and everyone on every side feels the pain. The situation, though played for both laughs and scares, is grounded enough in reality that The Oath doesn’t seem like a paranoid fantasy, but like a real possibility in this cultural moment. “I think the word I would use to describe our current political ecosystem is absurd,” says Barinholtz. “We have an absurd president, you know what I mean? We have absurd leaders. People handle and process these things in an absurd manner.”
That absurdity led to an obvious comparison: “I wanted people to feel like when they’re watching the movie, [it’s] like they’re going through a Twitter feed. You go to your Twitter feed and you’re like, ‘Oh, that’s a nice video. That’s funny, that dog is hilarious. Oh my God, they’re separating parents and their children at the border. Holy shit.’ I really wanted to make it reflective of that, and just take people on that journey.”
The Oath is rated R, and opens in theaters everywhere October 12. Visit fandango.com.
Leo Varadkar, Ireland's youngest, first openly gay, and first multiracial prime minister, announced on March 20 that he is stepping down from office.
Varadkar resigned as leader of the Fine Gael political party and will resign as prime minister -- or taoiseach -- once a successor is named.
Standing on the steps of the Government Buildings in Dublin, the 45-year-old said he was stepping down for "personal and political" reasons, "but mainly political," reported The Guardian.
"I believe this government can be re-elected," Varadkar said. "I believe a new taoiseach will be better placed than me to achieve that -- to renew and strengthen the top team, to refocus our message and policies, and to drive implementation. After seven years in office, I am no longer the best person for that job."
Modi Rosenfeld, better known as simply the mono-monikered Modi, does not consider himself political. Primarily, he's Jewish. Then gay. His role as a comedian is near the top. But political?
"100 percent not," Modi insists. "Not at all."
Still, the Israel-born, Long Island-raised Modi knows his way around a political arena. His turn at roasting the famous in the service of Commentary magazine is testament. During the Donald Trump administration, the guest of honor was former senator Joe Lieberman. The best line, however, was aimed at one of Lieberman's senatorial siblings, in that period of Senate confirmation hearings for Trump's raft of Supreme Court nominations.
Variety is the name of the game of this very section, a treasure trove of nontraditional, often multi-genre, events that don't neatly categorize in the other listings. This is where you'll find a few different alt-queer dance parties at DC9 to check out. Or if you'd like to consider reading a new book or getting to know a new-to-you queer author, flip the page to browse the lineup at the queer-owned Loyalty Bookstore.
Feel like taking in an art show that's not in a building surrounding the Mall? Consider Glen Echo Park. Looking for drag queens? See the Boulet Brothers at the Fillmore, or Shi-Queeta-Lee and company at The Hamilton Live. And if you like to laugh, well... we have queer comics galore.
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