Kevin Dunn

Like an ill-advised one-night stand, the new indie rom-com ‘Slow Learners’ starts out great and ends with ugliness and deleted phone numbers.

De Palma has relied on expressionist imagery and self-reflexivity for most of his career, so why is it a problem with Snake Eyes? Were critics expecting a different sort of experience because of the genre? Either way, the issue seems worth delving into, if only to unpack false notions of the film being a waste of time.

Serial killers have provided ripe material for film for several years, both directly and indirectly. Alfred Hitchcock’s seminal horror classic Psycho famously had a lead character modelled after Ed Gein, while David Fincher’s Zodiac notably took a different tack by focusing on an ultimately unsuccessful investigation.

Throughout the second season, the US administration has found itself embroiled in one issue after another, beginning with the poor showing at the election in the season premiere. The President’s attempts at passing the buck on these issues have not only been futile in keeping his own nose clean, but have also turned members of his own administration against him, including Vice-President Meyer herself, as the end of last week’s episode indicated.

Selina admitting knowledge of the CIA spy last week came at the heels of a season-long campaign where she has ended up on the losing end of most political matters without having any say in the decision. Becoming the public face of accountability for atleast one of the government’s scandals thus gave her the ability to control the narrative in atleast one situation. The season’s penultimate episode this week sees Selina try to take further control of her political career as she realises her role in the current administration, in an episode that continues to be funny while still managing to effectively move the characters forward.

Foreign relations are a key aspect of any politician’s job, with the importance of maintaining a good rapport with the international community being the most important aspect of many political positions. With the comedic song about the various European countries that Selina Meyer sang at a private function making its way online last week ahead of a visit to Europe, courtesy of Jonah, the Vice-President’s ability to mend fences was sure to be put to the test, and it is this facet of the office that this episode explores, delivering another strong episode that fleshes out some of the show’s secondary characters.

Veep, Season 2, Episode 1: “Midterms” Written by Will Smith and Armando Iannucci Directed by Christopher Morris Airs Sundays at 10pm (ET) on HBO While viewing politics through a cynical eye is nothing new, the HBO series Veep managed to put an effectively fresh spin on it, building a stable of characters around Vice President …