By Jaime Woo

Reflections in the Hall of Mirrors: American Movies and the Politics of Idealism is a series of lectures at the Revue Cinema that will look at films made during past and present American presidencies that reflect the culture and politics of their time. The lectures will run monthly from April until November, with the first lecture scheduled for April 26 at 10:30 a.m on the Kennedy era. The Manchurian Candidate, about a soldier brainwashed by Communists to become a political assassin, will be shown on Wednesday, April 30 and Thursday, May 1 to coincide with the lecture.
In time for the American elections, the last lecture will be in November on George W. Bush. It’ll be interesting to see which movies are chosen as best reflecting the Dubya presidency. There’s plenty of selection—from Fahrenheit 9/11 to the string of low-grossing war-themed films to torture porn flicks like Saw.
Photo still from Fahrenheit 9/11.