100 Bewildering Hours at Cannes by Rachel Handler Festival de Cannes should always be covered with the tone of lightly aggrieved amusement that Rachel Handler brings to this piece. Or at least the calculated glamor of the French film showcase … Continue reading Outside Reading — Golden Palm edition
I thought my time in college radio was the heyday of cool bands convening on album to roar through cover versions other acts’ song. For a stretch the early nineteen-nineties, it seemed like barely a week went by without another … Continue reading This Week’s Model — Diet Cig, “The Unforgiven”
A couple films back, I read someone’s observations on the movie multiplex dominance of Marvel Entertainment. They listed off a few of the business and creative decisions that could be plausibly considered key contributors to the success of the studio … Continue reading Now Playing — Black Widow
In his new feature, No Sudden Move, Steven Soderbergh follows the most fundamental rules of modern film noir. The film takes place in a mid-century era of the American past, at roughly the same time when classic Hollywood film noirs … Continue reading Now Playing — No Sudden Move
Sometimes comedy illuminates hard truths with a pointed urgency that other means can’t quite achieve. Sometimes comedy is just funny. This series of posts is mostly about the former instances, but the latter is valuable, too. Although I’d quickly concede … Continue reading Laughing Matters — “New York Lonely Boy”
On the eve of the main awards-giving entity for the field of television announcing their nominations celebrating the excellence of the season past, I adhere to my tradition, which is by now long-standing, of tossing my modest couple of pennies … Continue reading Top Ten Television, 2020-2021 season
329. 10,000 Maniacs, In My Tribe (1987) “I think music can unify people in a way,” 10,000 Maniacs lead singer Natalie Merchant said not long after the release of In My Tribe, the band’s third album. “What can be more … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #329 to #327
Chef Francesca Hong Is Proving that Food Is Political by Esther Tseng As noted previously, I’m lucky to live in a community that largely reflects the values I believe in most strongly. That good fortune extends to my elected representative … Continue reading Outside Reading — Representation edition
Sometimes it’s difficult for me to fathom that Courtney Barnett hasn’t always been there, for as long as I’ve been happy losing myself in the slow flow of melancholy, mischievous rock songs. “Rae Street,” the new track from Barnett, is … Continue reading This Week’s Model — Courtney Barnett, “Rae Street”
I read a lot of comic books as a kid. This series of posts is about the comics I read, and, occasionally, the comics that I should have read. As the nineteen-seventies dawned, the mavens of Marvel weren’t quite sure … Continue reading My Misspent Youth — Amazing Adventures by Gary Friedrich and John Buscema
Coffee for Two 