Ronald W. Berkowsky, PhD 🏳️🌈
@ronaldberkowsky.bsky.social
Associate Professor in Health Sciences at California State University Channel Islands. Medical sociologist & gerontologist. Focused on community-engaged work addressing well-being & equity among older adults and LGBTQIA+. Occasional film essayist. (he/him)
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On Transitions and Care Work in Andrea Pallaoro’s Monica
Film: Monica (106 min)
academic.oup.com
New year, new film essay! I'm happy to share my review of Andrea Pallaoro's "Monica" has been published in this month's issue of The Gerontologist. In my latest essay, I discuss the film's portrayal of care work and transitioning into the caregiver (and care recipient) role.
#FilmSky #Gerontology
#FilmSky #Gerontology
Whoops, looks like the original video was taken down - but a new version has just been posted!
February 18, 2026 at 9:55 PM
Whoops, looks like the original video was taken down - but a new version has just been posted!
A few lines on Ira Sachs' interesting experiment in form, "Peter Hujar's Day" (2025):
"...Ben Whishaw must be given due credit, as his Peter Hujar is an example of finely calibrated restraint – Whishaw comes off casual, reflective, and genuine throughout the film’s short runtime."
"...Ben Whishaw must be given due credit, as his Peter Hujar is an example of finely calibrated restraint – Whishaw comes off casual, reflective, and genuine throughout the film’s short runtime."
A ★★★ review of Peter Hujar's Day (2025)
Ira Sachs’ “Peter Hujar’s Day” (2025) functions both as a biopic and as an exercise in form. The film stages a 1974 conversation between friends, the renowned artist Peter Hujar and writer Linda Rosen...
boxd.it
February 18, 2026 at 6:46 PM
A few lines on Ira Sachs' interesting experiment in form, "Peter Hujar's Day" (2025):
"...Ben Whishaw must be given due credit, as his Peter Hujar is an example of finely calibrated restraint – Whishaw comes off casual, reflective, and genuine throughout the film’s short runtime."
"...Ben Whishaw must be given due credit, as his Peter Hujar is an example of finely calibrated restraint – Whishaw comes off casual, reflective, and genuine throughout the film’s short runtime."
Had the opportunity to speak to 101.3 FM ("Camaradio") detailing CSUCI's newly launched Masters in Healthcare Administration (MHA) program - was a lot of fun! If you're looking to further your healthcare education (and potentially earn a credential in gerontology in the process), consider applying!
Leadership in Healthcare: CSUCI’s Online Master of Health Care Administration (MHA)
YouTube video by 101.3FM Camaradio
youtu.be
February 17, 2026 at 6:59 PM
Had the opportunity to speak to 101.3 FM ("Camaradio") detailing CSUCI's newly launched Masters in Healthcare Administration (MHA) program - was a lot of fun! If you're looking to further your healthcare education (and potentially earn a credential in gerontology in the process), consider applying!
I'm shocked this film was eligible for the Spirit Awards (it just looks *expensive*) - but beyond the crafts, Bryan Fuller's "Dust Bunny" impresses on story:
"Bryan Fuller’s feature directorial debut 'Dust Bunny' is a stylish, imaginative, yet slightly terrifying and slyly perverse bedtime story."
"Bryan Fuller’s feature directorial debut 'Dust Bunny' is a stylish, imaginative, yet slightly terrifying and slyly perverse bedtime story."
A ★★★½ review of Dust Bunny (2025)
Bryan Fuller’s feature directorial debut “Dust Bunny” is a stylish, imaginative, yet slightly terrifying and slyly perverse bedtime story. In it, Mads Mikkelsen’s hit man protagonist is recruited by a...
boxd.it
February 17, 2026 at 12:13 AM
I'm shocked this film was eligible for the Spirit Awards (it just looks *expensive*) - but beyond the crafts, Bryan Fuller's "Dust Bunny" impresses on story:
"Bryan Fuller’s feature directorial debut 'Dust Bunny' is a stylish, imaginative, yet slightly terrifying and slyly perverse bedtime story."
"Bryan Fuller’s feature directorial debut 'Dust Bunny' is a stylish, imaginative, yet slightly terrifying and slyly perverse bedtime story."
Sunday long run complete - no sun, no problem! Nine miles through Brentwood and Santa Monica. Could see the Santa Monica pier in the distance and not gonna lie - it was weird not seeing the big ol’ tent for the Film Independent Spirit Awards (they’re at the Palladium this year).
February 15, 2026 at 7:36 PM
Sunday long run complete - no sun, no problem! Nine miles through Brentwood and Santa Monica. Could see the Santa Monica pier in the distance and not gonna lie - it was weird not seeing the big ol’ tent for the Film Independent Spirit Awards (they’re at the Palladium this year).
I have found, as I've gotten older, that I tend to be more critical of comedies (I just don't laugh as much!). So I was quite surprised by how taken I was with "Splitsville" (Michael Angelo Covino, 2025):
"...the film finds regret and remorse (and several laughs) in the fallout of sexual honesty."
"...the film finds regret and remorse (and several laughs) in the fallout of sexual honesty."
A ★★★½ review of Splitsville (2025)
Michael Angelo Covino’s “Splitsville” (2025) turns a partner-swapping riot into a coolly observed study of modern coupling. In it, one marriage dissolves while another tests the physical and emotional...
boxd.it
February 15, 2026 at 4:34 PM
I have found, as I've gotten older, that I tend to be more critical of comedies (I just don't laugh as much!). So I was quite surprised by how taken I was with "Splitsville" (Michael Angelo Covino, 2025):
"...the film finds regret and remorse (and several laughs) in the fallout of sexual honesty."
"...the film finds regret and remorse (and several laughs) in the fallout of sexual honesty."
Long overdue (as I viewed this 2 weeks ago), but I finally found the time and energy to put a few words down on the quiet yet profound "Familiar Touch" (2024, dir. Sarah Friedland):
"In this way, [the film] is less about deterioration as we age and more about the presence of self..."
"In this way, [the film] is less about deterioration as we age and more about the presence of self..."
A ★★★★ review of Familiar Touch (2024)
Sarah Friedland’s “Familiar Touch” (2024) enters previously-explored territory in its depiction of an aging woman and her slow cognitive decline – but, the beauty of the film lies in the film’s abilit...
boxd.it
February 13, 2026 at 5:20 PM
Long overdue (as I viewed this 2 weeks ago), but I finally found the time and energy to put a few words down on the quiet yet profound "Familiar Touch" (2024, dir. Sarah Friedland):
"In this way, [the film] is less about deterioration as we age and more about the presence of self..."
"In this way, [the film] is less about deterioration as we age and more about the presence of self..."
New year, new film essay! I'm happy to share my review of Andrea Pallaoro's "Monica" has been published in this month's issue of The Gerontologist. In my latest essay, I discuss the film's portrayal of care work and transitioning into the caregiver (and care recipient) role.
#FilmSky #Gerontology
#FilmSky #Gerontology
On Transitions and Care Work in Andrea Pallaoro’s Monica
Film: Monica (106 min)
academic.oup.com
January 31, 2026 at 8:55 PM
New year, new film essay! I'm happy to share my review of Andrea Pallaoro's "Monica" has been published in this month's issue of The Gerontologist. In my latest essay, I discuss the film's portrayal of care work and transitioning into the caregiver (and care recipient) role.
#FilmSky #Gerontology
#FilmSky #Gerontology
Reposted by Ronald W. Berkowsky, PhD 🏳️🌈
On a trend us film professors have seen. Free link to “The Film Students Who Can No Longer Sit Through Films” from THE ATLANTIC yesterday.
archive.ph/GFWzW
archive.ph/GFWzW
January 31, 2026 at 5:43 AM
On a trend us film professors have seen. Free link to “The Film Students Who Can No Longer Sit Through Films” from THE ATLANTIC yesterday.
archive.ph/GFWzW
archive.ph/GFWzW
Reposted by Ronald W. Berkowsky, PhD 🏳️🌈
A few words on 2025's "Lurker":
"Russell sustains a careful pace and uneasiness throughout, save for a somewhat rushed final third. Despite this, 'Lurker' is an impressive directorial debut with standout lead performances that will linger (or dare I say, lurk?) long after the credits roll."
"Russell sustains a careful pace and uneasiness throughout, save for a somewhat rushed final third. Despite this, 'Lurker' is an impressive directorial debut with standout lead performances that will linger (or dare I say, lurk?) long after the credits roll."
A ★★★½ review of Lurker (2025)
A polished and confident debut, Alex Russell’s simmering thriller “Lurker” follows Matthew Morning (Théodore Pellerin) as he socially maneuvers and schemes his way into the good graces of rising music...
boxd.it
January 27, 2026 at 1:40 AM
A few words on 2025's "Lurker":
"Russell sustains a careful pace and uneasiness throughout, save for a somewhat rushed final third. Despite this, 'Lurker' is an impressive directorial debut with standout lead performances that will linger (or dare I say, lurk?) long after the credits roll."
"Russell sustains a careful pace and uneasiness throughout, save for a somewhat rushed final third. Despite this, 'Lurker' is an impressive directorial debut with standout lead performances that will linger (or dare I say, lurk?) long after the credits roll."
And next up, a few words on 2025's "The Ugly Stepsister" (dir. Emilie Blichfeldt), a surprise (but arguably deserved) Oscar nominee:
"'The Ugly Stepsister' is...a body horror study of internalized hatred where the terror lies in one’s self-loathing and in the dangerous choices it leads to.
"'The Ugly Stepsister' is...a body horror study of internalized hatred where the terror lies in one’s self-loathing and in the dangerous choices it leads to.
A ★★★½ review of The Ugly Stepsister (2025)
As Emilie Blichfeldt’s directorial debut “The Ugly Stepsister” progresses, one may be inclined to assume that this Cinderella-inspired horror film may eventually become a revenge fantasy; after all, a...
boxd.it
January 25, 2026 at 10:20 PM
And next up, a few words on 2025's "The Ugly Stepsister" (dir. Emilie Blichfeldt), a surprise (but arguably deserved) Oscar nominee:
"'The Ugly Stepsister' is...a body horror study of internalized hatred where the terror lies in one’s self-loathing and in the dangerous choices it leads to.
"'The Ugly Stepsister' is...a body horror study of internalized hatred where the terror lies in one’s self-loathing and in the dangerous choices it leads to.
Making my way through the 2026 Spirit Awards blind spots. So, here are a few lines on Christian Swegal's 2025 film "Sovereign":
"While Swegal does not shy away from indicting the absurdities of the sovereign citizen belief system, he also keenly humanizes the movement without indulging it..."
"While Swegal does not shy away from indicting the absurdities of the sovereign citizen belief system, he also keenly humanizes the movement without indulging it..."
A ★★★ review of Sovereign (2025)
Christian Swegal’s 2025 tense thriller “Sovereign” revisits the 2010 West Memphis shootings wherein sovereign citizens Jerry and Joseph Kane shot and killed two police officers during a traffic stop. ...
boxd.it
January 25, 2026 at 5:32 PM
Making my way through the 2026 Spirit Awards blind spots. So, here are a few lines on Christian Swegal's 2025 film "Sovereign":
"While Swegal does not shy away from indicting the absurdities of the sovereign citizen belief system, he also keenly humanizes the movement without indulging it..."
"While Swegal does not shy away from indicting the absurdities of the sovereign citizen belief system, he also keenly humanizes the movement without indulging it..."
Attempting to catch-up on my capsule reviews today (have 3 blurbs in process). Up first: Lucio Fulci's classic "Don't Torture a Duckling":
"...some – like Florinda Bolkan as the accused Maciara – attack their characters with reckless abandon, making for an even more intensified watch."
#FilmSky
"...some – like Florinda Bolkan as the accused Maciara – attack their characters with reckless abandon, making for an even more intensified watch."
#FilmSky
A ★★★★ review of Don't Torture a Duckling (1972)
Less concerned with urban corruption and more concerned with rural rot, Lucio Fulci’s classic 1972 giallo “Don’t Torture a Duckling” follows the investigation of a series of child murders in a small, ...
boxd.it
January 19, 2026 at 5:02 PM
Attempting to catch-up on my capsule reviews today (have 3 blurbs in process). Up first: Lucio Fulci's classic "Don't Torture a Duckling":
"...some – like Florinda Bolkan as the accused Maciara – attack their characters with reckless abandon, making for an even more intensified watch."
#FilmSky
"...some – like Florinda Bolkan as the accused Maciara – attack their characters with reckless abandon, making for an even more intensified watch."
#FilmSky
This is a UK-specific look, but American activists and scholars should take note - these tactics can be employed (and in some instances already have been) in the US.
New research maps the campaign to erase trans people from UK data 🔢
This peer-reviewed article offers the first detailed account of how UK campaign groups have sought to define sex as strictly biological across the census, policing, healthcare and digital ID.
doi.org/10.1080/0958...
This peer-reviewed article offers the first detailed account of how UK campaign groups have sought to define sex as strictly biological across the census, policing, healthcare and digital ID.
doi.org/10.1080/0958...
January 19, 2026 at 3:02 PM
This is a UK-specific look, but American activists and scholars should take note - these tactics can be employed (and in some instances already have been) in the US.
Playing end-of-2025 movie catch-up, now seated for…
January 19, 2026 at 2:04 AM
Playing end-of-2025 movie catch-up, now seated for…
A few words on "Marty Supreme" (which I respected more than liked):
"With a velocity not completely unlike a ping pong ball ripping back and forth on a table, Josh Safdie’s 2025 film 'Marty Supreme' is certainly kinetic...but [it] lacks an emotional logic which may keep some viewers at bay."
"With a velocity not completely unlike a ping pong ball ripping back and forth on a table, Josh Safdie’s 2025 film 'Marty Supreme' is certainly kinetic...but [it] lacks an emotional logic which may keep some viewers at bay."
A ★★★½ review of Marty Supreme (2025)
With a velocity not completely unlike a ping pong ball ripping back and forth on a table, Josh Safdie’s 2025 film “Marty Supreme” is certainly kinetic. Inspired in part by the life of Marty Reisman, t...
boxd.it
January 18, 2026 at 5:07 PM
A few words on "Marty Supreme" (which I respected more than liked):
"With a velocity not completely unlike a ping pong ball ripping back and forth on a table, Josh Safdie’s 2025 film 'Marty Supreme' is certainly kinetic...but [it] lacks an emotional logic which may keep some viewers at bay."
"With a velocity not completely unlike a ping pong ball ripping back and forth on a table, Josh Safdie’s 2025 film 'Marty Supreme' is certainly kinetic...but [it] lacks an emotional logic which may keep some viewers at bay."
I'm generally not a fan of these types of films, but I was pleasantly surprised by "Song Sung Blue" (2025):
"Brewer’s command of the music film remains assured...[he] knows how to craft a film wherein the technical does not compete with the characters, making for a modest yet heartfelt biopic."
"Brewer’s command of the music film remains assured...[he] knows how to craft a film wherein the technical does not compete with the characters, making for a modest yet heartfelt biopic."
A ★★★½ review of Song Sung Blue (2025)
Two decades of tender devotion and professional turbulence are squeezed into Craig Brewer’s 2025 film “Song Sung Blue,” which depicts the true story of Mike and Claire Sardina, the infamous (at least ...
boxd.it
January 17, 2026 at 5:26 PM
I'm generally not a fan of these types of films, but I was pleasantly surprised by "Song Sung Blue" (2025):
"Brewer’s command of the music film remains assured...[he] knows how to craft a film wherein the technical does not compete with the characters, making for a modest yet heartfelt biopic."
"Brewer’s command of the music film remains assured...[he] knows how to craft a film wherein the technical does not compete with the characters, making for a modest yet heartfelt biopic."
I literally flew to Dallas from LA to attend an all-night horror film marathon. But f*ck my drag, right?
"You’re not going to get in the car and go to the next town to see a movie," says Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos
Ted Sarandos commits to 45-day theatrical windows, believes theaters are for city folk
Ted Sarandos commits to 45-day theatrical windows, believes theaters are for city folk
www.avclub.com
January 17, 2026 at 12:26 AM
I literally flew to Dallas from LA to attend an all-night horror film marathon. But f*ck my drag, right?
On Jim Jarmusch's 2025 "Father Mother Sister Brother":
"Throughout, Jarmusch suggests that unconventional lives of parents – those of rockers, novelists, adventurers – do not necessarily preclude from successful parenting, but such lives may shape the intimacies between children and their parents."
"Throughout, Jarmusch suggests that unconventional lives of parents – those of rockers, novelists, adventurers – do not necessarily preclude from successful parenting, but such lives may shape the intimacies between children and their parents."
A ★★★★ review of Father Mother Sister Brother (2025)
The 2025 film “Father Mother Sister Brother” (directed by Jim Jarmusch) pares down (or deconstructs?) the traditional family film to three spare but powerful vignettes, each exploring the uneasy space...
boxd.it
January 17, 2026 at 12:08 AM
On Jim Jarmusch's 2025 "Father Mother Sister Brother":
"Throughout, Jarmusch suggests that unconventional lives of parents – those of rockers, novelists, adventurers – do not necessarily preclude from successful parenting, but such lives may shape the intimacies between children and their parents."
"Throughout, Jarmusch suggests that unconventional lives of parents – those of rockers, novelists, adventurers – do not necessarily preclude from successful parenting, but such lives may shape the intimacies between children and their parents."
Was this plan…drafted with ChatGPT?
I ask because this supposed healthcare plan is devoid of any substantive detail - to the extent that I wouldn’t be surprised if AI was used to generate it. But regardless of how it was drafted, the problem remains: this is not a plan, just bullet points.
I ask because this supposed healthcare plan is devoid of any substantive detail - to the extent that I wouldn’t be surprised if AI was used to generate it. But regardless of how it was drafted, the problem remains: this is not a plan, just bullet points.
Trump’s new healthcare plan is two pages long and one of those pages is a cover sheet.
January 16, 2026 at 2:11 PM
Was this plan…drafted with ChatGPT?
I ask because this supposed healthcare plan is devoid of any substantive detail - to the extent that I wouldn’t be surprised if AI was used to generate it. But regardless of how it was drafted, the problem remains: this is not a plan, just bullet points.
I ask because this supposed healthcare plan is devoid of any substantive detail - to the extent that I wouldn’t be surprised if AI was used to generate it. But regardless of how it was drafted, the problem remains: this is not a plan, just bullet points.
And next up, a few sentences on the 2024 investigative thriller "Smoke Signals" (dir. Antoine Raimbault):
"The scandal is complex, and thus some exposition is warranted (particularly for non-European audiences), but 'Smoke Signals' ultimately plays like case file devoid of a more human touch."
"The scandal is complex, and thus some exposition is warranted (particularly for non-European audiences), but 'Smoke Signals' ultimately plays like case file devoid of a more human touch."
A ★★½ review of Smoke Signals (2024)
Antoine Raimbault’s 2024 investigative thriller “Smoke Signals” portrays what has come to be known as the Dalli affair (or Dalligate) with a sobriety too-often employed in investigative films. While t...
boxd.it
January 15, 2026 at 9:30 PM
And next up, a few sentences on the 2024 investigative thriller "Smoke Signals" (dir. Antoine Raimbault):
"The scandal is complex, and thus some exposition is warranted (particularly for non-European audiences), but 'Smoke Signals' ultimately plays like case file devoid of a more human touch."
"The scandal is complex, and thus some exposition is warranted (particularly for non-European audiences), but 'Smoke Signals' ultimately plays like case file devoid of a more human touch."
On 2024's "Twisters" (dir. Lee Isaac Chung):
"Chung supplies some contemporary gloss, with real estate speculation and greed introduced as a secondary menace to nature’s destructive force, but the film still follows an overly familiar trajectory."
"Chung supplies some contemporary gloss, with real estate speculation and greed introduced as a secondary menace to nature’s destructive force, but the film still follows an overly familiar trajectory."
A ★★★ review of Twisters (2024)
Similar to the paired storms featured so prominently in the film’s marketing campaign (as screamed by one of the storm chasers: “We got twins…TWINS!”), Lee Isaac Chung’s “Twisters” (2024) often feels ...
boxd.it
January 15, 2026 at 9:03 PM
On 2024's "Twisters" (dir. Lee Isaac Chung):
"Chung supplies some contemporary gloss, with real estate speculation and greed introduced as a secondary menace to nature’s destructive force, but the film still follows an overly familiar trajectory."
"Chung supplies some contemporary gloss, with real estate speculation and greed introduced as a secondary menace to nature’s destructive force, but the film still follows an overly familiar trajectory."
A few words on the French "Meanwhile on Earth" (2024):
"The film is not ageist per se but is certainly illustrating society’s ageist attitudes towards older adults, as the elders presented are defined by dementia and dependency and are framed as already being less autonomous and with less purpose."
"The film is not ageist per se but is certainly illustrating society’s ageist attitudes towards older adults, as the elders presented are defined by dementia and dependency and are framed as already being less autonomous and with less purpose."
A ★★★½ review of Meanwhile on Earth (2024)
One the subtle wonders of Jérémy Clapin’s 2024 “Meanwhile on Earth” is its quiet evolution from science-fiction mystery to unnerving morality play. Megan Northam plays Elsa, a young woman grieving the...
boxd.it
January 13, 2026 at 4:37 PM
A few words on the French "Meanwhile on Earth" (2024):
"The film is not ageist per se but is certainly illustrating society’s ageist attitudes towards older adults, as the elders presented are defined by dementia and dependency and are framed as already being less autonomous and with less purpose."
"The film is not ageist per se but is certainly illustrating society’s ageist attitudes towards older adults, as the elders presented are defined by dementia and dependency and are framed as already being less autonomous and with less purpose."
I would be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous about this case - this argument is framed as a sports-centered issue, but it’s another stepping stone in broader attempt to legislate trans people out of existence.
January 13, 2026 at 2:15 PM
I would be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous about this case - this argument is framed as a sports-centered issue, but it’s another stepping stone in broader attempt to legislate trans people out of existence.