The testosterone-suffused Out of the Furnace, written and co-directed by Scott Cooper, is a grim take on archetypal Mars gone berserk. The red planet, which oversees the business of how one goes about getting what one wants, bleeds its crimson in every frame, symbolically if not literally. In the Rust Belt, specifically Braddock, Pennsylvania, where […]
Astrology: Film: ‘Rush’ (2013)
It’s the ultimate guys’ movie. Ron Howard’s Rush, which chronicles the professional and personal rivalry between two Formula One drivers in 1976, is jam-packed with testosterone and just about every traditional Mars-fueled behavior in the book. The real-life protagonists are Brit James Hunt (Chris Hemsworth) and Austrian Niki Lauda (Daniel Brühl), and their over-the-top competitiveness […]
Astrology: Film: ‘Populaire’ (2013)
Can a movie about national and international typing competitions be a sly nod to Uranian equality in the workplace and female egalitarianism and independence? Mai oui! That’s the message of Populaire, a frothy and visually delicious French delight, directed by Régis Roinsard. Set in 1958, in a small French village, Rose Pamphyle (Déborah François) is […]
Astrology: Film: ‘Kick-Ass 2’ (2013)
Kick-Ass 2 may be a live-action cartoon, but its clear-eyed sentiments go well below the surface. The movie, directed by Jeff Wadlow, poses the question of whether the costumed life one takes on – as do the superheroes here – is more true and valid than one’s “real” life without an alternate wardrobe. This question […]
Astrology: Television: ‘Breaking Bad’: Dean Norris’s Hank Shows His Sexy Side
Walter White (Bryan Cranston) and his DEA brother-in-law Hank Schrader (Dean Norris) are now officially engaged in a pissing contest. Mars – the animal energy that thrives on winning and defeating opponents – rules. Last night’s broadcast of “Blood Money,” the first of the show’s final eight episodes, picked up with Hank’s leaving the White […]





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