In “Keeping Up Appearances,” Patricia Routledge served as a mirror to middle-class society and its petty preoccupations and mores.
Jake Martin
Jake Martin, S.J. is an assistant professor of film studies at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles. He received his PhD in Film Studies from Trinity College, Dublin in 2023. His book What’s So Funny About Faith: A Memoir from the Intersection of the Hilarious and Holy was published by Loyola Press in 2012. He has been a contributing writer on film and television for America since 2009 and has written for numerous other publications including Huffington Post, Busted Halo and American Catholic Studies. Jake is also an actor and improvisational comedian whose solo show ”Learning to Pray in Front of the Television“ was an official selection for the 2012 Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Jake has performed at numerous venues in Chicago and New York
Posted inIdeas
Pope Leo is a tennis guy. That checks out.
Leo’s more reserved, reflective and gentle approach speaks to the solitary nature of tennis.
Posted inArts & Culture, News Analysis
A requiem for Stephen Colbert, the most subversive Catholic voice in late-night TV
I felt two things when Stephen Colbert announced last Thursday that in nine months, CBS would be ending his top-rated “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.” I felt uncomfortable. And I felt old.
Posted inArts & Culture, Film
What makes a movie Irish?
Questions of Irish identity and “Irishness” are, and always have been, in a state of flux.
Posted inArts & Culture, Television
‘Bad Sisters’ perfectly captures sibling bonds and Irish gallows humor
Before it is a thriller, before it is a dark comedy, “Bad Sisters” is a love story.
Posted inArts & Culture, Film
Review: ‘Saturday Night’ presents a sweeter version of the SNL origin story
I approach Jason Reitman’s just released film, “Saturday Night,” with equal parts suspicion and an unwarranted sense of proprietorship.
Posted inArts & Culture, Ideas
Comedian Matt Rife’s crowd work depends on marginalized people in the audience in ‘Walking Red Flag’
Rife’s humor of the quick, off-the cuff variety is best suited to these more conversational modes of presentation. He is lucky that he has a gift for improvisation and interacting with crowds, because his straight up standup is pedestrian.
Posted inArts & Culture, Ideas
What Pope Francis and Stephen Colbert know: Comedy is essential to a life of faith
The easiest way through the recognition of our sinfulness is through humor.
Posted inArts & Culture, Ideas
‘Challengers’ has made tennis cool again. Can today’s players live up to the hype?
Professional tennis in the real world—as opposed to the reel world—is not quite as cool or sexy.
Posted inArts & Culture, Film
‘Immaculate’ is not your mother’s nun movie. It’s a feminist convent-horror film.
“Immaculate” is a cut above its cinematic cohorts, due in no small part to its decidedly feminist take.