This article is part of my Theme Week titled "Anxious Love, Anxious Laughter: The Art of Comedy in American Jewish Films" for In Media Res, which released in September. My article discusses Claudia Weill's film Girlfriends, which is an overlooked film in the Jewish American film canon. Importantly, it is one that is also often mis-categorized as a comedy, perhaps because it is a "Jewish film" and Jewish art has become so deeply connected to humor in the cultural understanding. In addition to preparing this piece, I was also the curator and coordinator for the Theme Week itself, and have thus taken the role as editor for the other contributors. You can access the article by clicking on the cover. 

Here is the MLA citation: Ozias, Joseph. “On the Cringe of Success: Finding the Humor in the Pain in Claudia Weill's Girlfriends.” In Media Res, 9 September 2024, https://mediacommons.org/imr/content/cringe-success-finding-humor-pain-claudia-weill%E2%80%99s-girlfriends.

This article for Film East celebrates the 10 year anniversary of Whiplash (2014). I look to the conversations that are still being had about this film's ending, even now. If you perform a quick Google search for “Whiplash ending” you will find countless conversations online of people asking—“what happened? Was it happy or was it sad? Was it a good ending or a bad ending? Do they like each other now, does Andrew’s dad approve of his son’s passions, or hate it more? Does he give him a look of understanding, or fear?” In this article, I argue that not only does it not matter to Andrew, Fletcher and the purpose of the film overall what occurs after this climactic moment between them, but also that the film has already given the viewer a glimpse into the few possible futures Andrew might have in store. I explore these possible futures, showing how the film poses them through other characters and their various fates, and ultimately conclude with a discussion about how every potential future for Andrew is indeed negative, that he will eventually pay the price for his ambition. You can access the article by clicking on the site cover. 

Here is the MLA citation: Ozias, Joseph. “Possible Futures and the Price of Ambition: Exploring the Ending of Whiplash 10 Years On.” Film East, 8 July 2024, https://www.film-east.com/s/stories/possible-futures-and-the-price-of-ambition