KEYNOTE SPEAKER
MARK BOAL
Mark Boal is an award-winning screenwriter and producer who has ample experience in the realms of both film and journalism. In 2004, Boal spent time with troops and bomb squads in the Middle East during the Iraq War. By working closely with troops and seeing the conflict's effect on the soldiers first hand, Boal was provided the inspiration not only for his reporting, but also for his politically charged and realistic films. Boal will deliver his keynote speech Tuesday, Feb. 5 at 6 p.m. in Burns Back Court.
Associated Press
NAME: Mark Boal
BIO
WHAT HE DID/DOES: freelance journalist, screenwriter, producer EDUCATION: Bachelor’s in Philosophy, Oberlin College KNOWN FOR: “Zero Dark Thirty” (screenplay, producer), “The Hurt Locker” (screenplay, producer) and “In the Valley of Elah” (story)
JOURNALISTIC WORK: has written for Playboy, Rolling Stone and the Village Voice ACCOLADES: 2 Oscars, 1 BAFTA, 1 WGA award; nominated for 2 Oscars this year
It seems like college kids will do just
about anything for free food, from joining a mailing list to listening to a two-minute pitch about why we need to conserve water to filming a declaration of your love for that new energy drink. But what about giving up the right to post on Facebook how disappointed you are with the election results? Maybe. What about giving up your freedom to celebrate Hanukkah, wear a cross around your neck and essentially sacrificing your right to practice the religion of your choice?
As part of First Amendment Week, the
Loyolan hosts Food for Freedom, testing just how far students will go for complimentary food. Students are asked to sign a contract of sorts, waiving their First Amendment rights temporarily, in exchange for a free meal, and subjecting themselves to the possible consequences of giving up these rights. Food for Freedom will take place on Tuesday, Feb. 5, during Convo in Regents Grass between St. Rob’s Hall and Malone Student Center. Come out and see just what you are giving up for the sake of free pizza.
FOOD FOR FREEDOM
RELIGION PANEL
“Freedom is a gift from God,” said
That very question will be the focus of a panel this Thursday as part of First Amendment Week. President Barack Obama in his 2013 inaugural address, shortly after taking the presidential oath with University President David W. Burcham, who is an expert in constitutional law, will moderate. his hand on a Bible used by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. The vow, said Obama, makes “an oath to God A diverse trio of LMU faculty and staff will sit on and country.” the panel: Rabbi Ilana Schachter, coordinator for For centuries, American politicians of all parties have used religious rhetoric in speeches and ridden waves of spiritual fervor straight into office. The strong connection between politics and religion begs the question: Is it constitutional and/or morally just for politicians to allow religion to affect their work in the government?
Christopher Kaczor is a professor of philosophy and holds a Ph.D. from the University of Notre Dame. He has written nine books concerned with ethics, philosophy and religion, most recently “The Seven Big Myths about the Catholic Church” and “The Ethics of Abortion.” His research has been featured in numerous news outlets, including The Wall Street Journal, The Huffington Post and on “The Today Show.”
Photos: LMU
Jewish Student Services and Hillel Rabbi; theology professor Amir Hussain and philosophy professor Christopher Kaczor.
Students, faculty and staff can attend the panel in U-Hall’s Ahmanson Auditorium (U-Hall 1000) on Thursday, Feb. 7 during Convo hour. Amir Hussain, a professor in LMU’s theology department, specializes in the study of Islam, particularly contemporary Muslim societies. In 2011, Hussain became the first Muslim editor of the prestigious Journal of the American Academy of Religion, a position he will hold for five years. Hussain, who was born in Pakistan and grew up in Canada, has published over 25 articles and book chapters on Islam since 2005.
Ilana Schachter, Rabbi for Jewish Student Services and Hillel, came to LMU in 2010. A Manhattan native, she holds a degree from Brown University and became a rabbi after attending Los Angeles’ Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion. Schachter serves as the campus rabbi and is responsible for building and growing the Jewish presence at LMU.
David W. Burcham (Panel Moderator) is the 15th president of Loyola Marymount University, and the first lay president in the history of the University. Graduating first in his class at Loyola Law School in 1984, he continued on to serve as clerk for a U.S. Supreme Court Justice. He worked in private practice from 1987 to 1991, and he served as dean of Loyola Law School. Finally, he was executive vice president and provost at LMU until he was named president in 2010.
YOUR FOUR-STEP GUIDE TO THE “ZERO
DARK THIRTY” CONTROVERSY
So what is all the fuss about? “Zero Dark Thirty” was released to critical acclaim in December, but even before its wide release, the film’s creative team had to contend with criticism about the depictions of torture in the film. According to the Guardian, Senators Dianne Feinstein, Carl Levin and John McCain released a letter of concern to Sony Pictures’ CEO insisting that the film’s scenes of torture were “grossly inaccurate and misleading,” obscuring the actual facts of the interrogation techniques used in Iraq and Afghanistan post-9/11. This has led to a greater media narrative about the film’s endorsement of torture as a legitimate way of gaining information. Is that the only issue? Short answer: no. Long answer: kind of. According to the New York Times, Congressman Peter T. King has insisted that the filmmakers (namely, director Kathryn Bigelow and screenwriter Mark Boal) had improper access to CIA documents and information when making their film. However, a lot of this concern comes from how much information the filmmakers were given about the torture, so ultimately, the issue is the same. So how have the filmmakers responded? Both Boal and Bigelow stayed fairly silent at first. However, in mid-January, Bigelow responded in a big way by publishing an op-ed in the L.A. Times. In it, she clarified that depiction is not endorsement, which has been the defense of the film all along. Boal also hired a First Amendment-experienced lawyer, Jeffrey H. Smith, to assist with any potential Congressional inquiry, according to the New York Times. Has this affected the film’s critical and commercial response? Hard to say. Box office-wise, the film’s been doing fine (although not outstanding), but the award response has been pretty damaging. Bigelow wasn’t nominated for Best Director at the Academy Awards, and the film only received five nominations, while many pundits were expecting more. However, “Zero Dark Thirty” earned $24 million at the box office in its first weekend in wide release, so the film has clearly piqued interest in the general public.
Loyolan Staff Contributors To This Issue: Tyler Barnett, Michael Busse, Mary Grace Cerni, Chelsea Chenelle, Katherine Douthit, Kasey Eggert, Sydney Franz, Christopher James, Adrien Jarvis, Kevin O’Keeffe, Zaneta Pereira, Mercedes Pericas, Stephanie Schiller, Brigette Scobas and Jackson Turcotte.
AN OVERVIEW OF MARK BOAL’S WORK “THE HURT LOCKER” For most of us, the Iraq War has colored at least half of our lives, making it nearly impossible to not have some personal connection to it. As a society, we tend to approach the war more collectively than individually, particularly in our media, and we are all too quick to nationalize violence as heroic instead of reflecting on our actions. It is no surprise, then, that when a film comes out that deviates from this, it wins six UnPOPular Opinion Oscars. Kathryn Bigelow and Mark Boal’s film “The By Chelsea Chenelle Asst. A&E Editor Hurt Locker” adopts a documentary-like feel as it follows a U.S. Army Explosive Ordnance Disposal unit during its last month of rotation. Sergeant First Class William James, played by Jeremy Renner, joins the unit as a bomb specialist and brings with him his rebel attitude and unconventional tactics. James’ unit also includes Sergeant J.T. Sanborn, played by Anthony Mackie, and Specialist Owen Eldridge, played by Brian Geraghty, both of whom struggle to keep James in check as his reckless actions endanger them all. When I sat down to watch “The Hurt Locker,” I expected an in-your-face, action-packed war movie, especially after reading the summary on the back of the DVD box. While it definitely has its share of violence, “The Hurt Locker” differs from other war movies in its subtle use of suspense and tension, which take the movie from just another film to an experience. Much like the men in the film, viewers are constantly on edge, waiting for something big to happen. This pervasive anxiety, while nerve-wracking for the audience, further highlights James’ own confidence in his work and his erratic methods of dismantling bombs. Chris Hedges’ quote, shown during the title sequence, provides a guiding thought as we witness James’ character development. It reads: “The rush of battle is a potent and often lethal addiction, for war is a drug.” By chronicling the lead’s descent into that addiction, “The Hurt Locker” calls the viewer to question the ethics of war on a much more individual level. While it isn’t the critique of America that I so longed for, “The Hurt Locker” provides a new frame from which war should be discussed. Though not on Instant Queue, “The Hurt Locker” is available on Netflix. This is the opinion of Chelsea Chenelle, a sophomore art history major from San Diego, Calif. Please send comments to cchenelle@theloyolan.com.
“ZERO DARK THIRTY” It is strange to see current events so prevalent in today’s culture unfold on the silver screen right in front of you. Writer Mark Boal and director Kathryn Bigelow have done a painstakingly fantastic job at crafting a wonderful blend between a thrilling narrative and interesting docudrama. As “Zero Dark Thirty” clips along, one forgets the foregone conclusion but Chris becomes invested in following the manhunt to its Culture pulse-pounding end. This credit goes towards By Christopher James Boal as a writer who structures this film very A&E Editor methodically. Tidbits are revealed gradually as each scene informs the next until a dead end and the characters scramble to reevaluate information they’ve already learned. The heart of the project is in the performance of Jessica Chastain as Maya, the tough-as-nails, intensely determined and single-minded CIA agent who devoted her life to killing Osama Bin Laden. Watching her character unravel as her unshakable will grows all the more firm is the perfect example of acting on a high wire. There are so many ways for this character to go wrong, but Chastain always reels the character back into reality and makes Maya have a really strong presence in each scene. This is important, as her character does not talk too much. There are many times she lurks in the background, but her power is still felt even from the periphery of the frame. For being such a sensitive and pertinent topic, it is difficult to watch the film and separate ourselves from the decade of news reports and events we’ve lived through that are dramatized in the film. The hordes of research Boal did, rather even-handedly, to tell an unbiased account of the proceedings and make it full, complete and extensive shows his great instincts as a writer and as a journalist. One can tell he dove into the subject head on and as we celebrate First Amendment Week, we should be proud of the fact that Boal is able to take all the available research out there and make a film that comes to certain conclusions on what happens and allow this fantastic story of bravery and dedication to be told. The hunt for Osama Bin Laden was one of the most maddening and exhausting chapters in our country’s recent history and the film progressed in such a way to brilliantly simulate these feelings of hopelessness pushed aside by an overwhelming surge of perseverance. “Zero Dark Thirty” is still in theaters. This is the opinion of Christopher James, a junior screenwriting and business double major from Lodi, Calif. Please send comments to cjames@theloyolan.com.
Fun and Games
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Cartoons: Jackson Turcotte, cartoon editor
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T U E S D A Y. . . . . . . . . . . . FOOD FOR FREEDOM C o n v o h o u r, R e g e n t s G r a s s
*Co-sponsored by Fresh Brothers
KEYN OTE PRESENTATION “Zero Dark Thirty”
screenwriter & producer Mark Boal 6 p.m., Burns Back Court
*Free entry with valid OneCard; co-sponsored by ASLMU; no bags, no re-entry
T H U R S D A Y. . . . . . . . . . R E L I G I O N & P O L I T I C S PA N E L C o n v o h o u r, A h m a n s o n A u d i t o r i u m (1st floor of U-Hall)