Dante Today

Citings & Sightings of Dante's Works in Contemporary Culture

  • Submit a Citing
  • Map
  • Links
  • Bibliography
  • User’s Guide
  • Teaching Resources
  • About

Joe Dante’s Divine Comedy

April 8, 2022 By Harrison Betz, FSU '25

joe_dante_article_screenshot“The following video essay takes a look at three studio films directed by the genius genre Joe Dante. While Dante’s early films emerged out of the energetic “get it done” approach of Roger Corman, his later experiences with studios were less than straightforward. The essay takes a look at the hybrid live-action animated feature Looney Tunes: Back in Action (2003), the sci-fi coming-of-age flick Explorers (1985), and the marvelously chaotic blank check that is Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990). In the essay, each segment parallels the three parts of Dante Alighieri’s Divine Comedy (Inferno, Purgatory, and Paradise, respectively). The result is a much more measured portrait of studio relations, from the hellish to the divine.” [. . .]    –Meg Shields, Film School Rejects, August 13, 2021 (retrieved March 30, 2022)

Categories: Digital Media
Tagged with: American Art, Films, Joe Dante, Movies, Reviews, United States, Videos, YouTube

Dante in the Essays of Susan Sontag

March 22, 2022 By Harrison Betz, FSU '25

susan_sontag_author_photo

American author and essayist Susan Sontag cites Dante and his Divine Comedy in a number of her essays. In her famous “Notes on ‘Camp’,” the Divine Comedy is referenced as part of “the pantheon of high culture: truth, beauty, and seriousness” (1966, 286). In “Against Interpretation,” Sontag states: “Once upon a time (say, for Dante), it must have been a revolutionary and creative move to design works of art so that they might be experienced on several levels. Now it is not” (1966, 13).

Sontag published “Notes on ‘Camp'” in 1964, but the essay was republished, along with “Against Interpretation,” in her 1966 collection Against Interpretation.

See our other post featuring the work of Sontag here.

Categories: Written Word
Tagged with: 1964, 1966, American Authors, Authors, Criticism, Essays, Literary Criticism, Literature, Non-Fiction, Nonfiction, United States, Writing

Dante’s Inferno Song, Whirlybird (2019)

March 8, 2022 By Harrison Betz, FSU '25

whirlybird_hot_flashes_album_cover

On October 9, 2019, American band Whirlybird released their EP Hot Flashes which included a song called “Dante’s Inferno”. The lyrics make reference to Dante’s journey through Hell, stating: “Dante’s coming through the inferno”.

Listen to the song here.

View the full lyrics of “Dante’s Inferno” here.

Categories: Music
Tagged with: 2019, American Music, Indie Rock, Inferno, Music, Songs, United States

Dante’s Inferno: It’s Time for the Lost Sequel Article, Gina Roberts (2021)

January 13, 2022 By Harrison Betz, FSU '25

dantes_inferno_video_game_sequal_screenshot

“Rumors have been surfacing regarding the potential return of an old franchise that is expected to be announced during next month’s EA Play.

“Dante’s Inferno is a fantastic game that received a lot of marketing and heavy support from EA at the time, even having a Super Bowl ad. It also received generally positive reviews and was impressive-looking for its time. Even though it has some graphic elements, it caused little controversy and went on to inspire a comic, an animated short, and a planned film adaptation.

“Dante’s Inferno was fantastic, but it didn’t get a chance to blossom. Instead of resurrecting games and franchises everyone knows and already loves, it’s time for the industry to pay attention to some underrated gems, giving life to titles that could have flourished if given the chance. Dante’s Inferno is a prime candidate for such treatment — after all, dark beat ’em ups certainly haven’t gone out of style.” [. . .]    –Gina Roberts, Comic Book Resources, June 22, 2021 (retrieved January 12, 2022)

Categories: Digital Media
Tagged with: Adaptations, Articles, Games, Gaming, Hell, Sequels, United States, Video Games

Purgatorio: A Journey Into the Heart of the Border Film, dir. Rodrigo Reyes (2013)

January 12, 2022 By Harrison Betz, FSU '25

purgatorio_rodrigo_reyes_poster“Reyes’ provocative essay film re-imagines the Mexico/U.S. border as a mythical place comparable to Dante’s purgatory. Leaving politics aside, he takes a fresh look at the brutal beauty of the border and the people caught in its spell. By capturing a stunning mosaic of compelling characters and broken landscapes that live on the US/Mexico border, the filmmaker reflects on the flaws of human nature and the powerful absurdities of the modern world. An unusual border film, in the auteur tradition of camerastylo, Purgatorio ultimately becomes a fable of humanity, an epic and visceral experience with powerful and lingering images.”    –description on Kino Lorber (retrieved January 12, 2022)

Watch a trailer for Purgatorio on Vimeo here.

Categories: Digital Media
Tagged with: 2013, American Politics, Borders, Documentary, Films, Immigration, International Politics, Mexico, Migration, Purgatorio, Purgatory, Spanish, United States

  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • …
  • 19
  • Next Page »

Categories

  • Consumer Goods (194)
  • Digital Media (126)
  • Dining & Leisure (107)
  • Music (190)
  • Odds & Ends (91)
  • Performing Arts (361)
  • Places (132)
  • Visual Art & Architecture (416)
  • Written Word (845)

Random Post

  • Adam Zgol’s Purgatorio Score

Frequent Tags

2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 700th anniversary Abandon All Hope America American Politics Art Artists Beatrice Blogs Books California Circles of Hell Comics Dark Wood Divine Comedy England Fiction Films Florence France Games Gates of Hell Hell History Humor Illustrations Inferno Internet Italian Italy Journalism Journeys Literary Criticism Literature Love Music New York City Non-Fiction Novels Paintings Paolo and Francesca Paradise Paradiso Performance Art Poetry Politics Purgatorio Purgatory Religion Restaurants Reviews Rock Science Fiction Sculptures Social Media Technology Television Tenth Circle Theater Translations United Kingdom United States Universities Video Games Virgil

ALL TAGS »

Image Mosaic

How to Cite

Coggeshall, Elizabeth, and Arielle Saiber, eds. Dante Today: Citings and Sightings of Dante's Works in Contemporary Culture. Website. Access date.

Creative

 





© 2006-2023 Dante Today
research.bowdoin.edu