On the intersection of pain and art… I had the distinct, um, pleasure is not the right word…I saw Buried recently and was shocked, dismayed, and walked out of the theater wondering if the world could ever be made right again. And all that from
On how music might be more important than story… Music is essential. This is especially true with someone like me who actually soundtracks my every day existence. The very goodness of a day can be completely swayed by my musical inclination. For instance, last week,
On the excellence of TV… from seasons past There’s no doubt that the end of September is an exciting time when we can return to our caves, veg out and watch new TV programming. But that excitement is often vanquished by the realization that so
Before I do anything on this fine day, I must give a shout out to my amazing grandmother who turns 90 years old today! Without her, this column wouldn’t exist. Since my day one she has embraced and shared with me her passion for all
Welcome to the revamped column! After a lovely and much needed break from writing, I decided that I wanted the next phase to focus more on integration of culture into my life, less a list and more of an interrogation of how one bit of
To my faithful readers, It has been an absolute pleasure for two years now to regale you with tales of my cultural exploits throughout NYC and beyond. But as with all things, there comes a time when you need to reinvent in order to find
1. MOVIE Inception There is no doubt that I was blown away by the visuals of this film, enough to keep me interested for two and a half hours and work very hard to understand the layers of the dream story. But when my brain
In my latest stint of movie-going, I’ve noticed a distinct greater excitement at previews, sometimes more than the main feature. Multiple flicks, edited down into three minute bite size bits is often so far more exciting that by the time the opening credits roll, I’ve
1. MOVIE Despicable Me This is one strange film, especially for kids. I could quickly rip this apart as second rate Pixar (it borrows heavily from Monsters Inc.) but I found myself thoroughly entertained by Steve Carell’s adept villain with a heart portrayal, the adorable
1. MOVIE The Kids Are Alright This wasn’t quite the saving grace of summer film that I was hoping for. Even as counter programming, I wasn’t completely smitten. The performances are undoubtedly excellent, especially from the always-luminous Annette Bening. But like Lisa Cholodenko’s earlier work,