Features
Tuesday, February 17 2009
The Way of All Flesh: Notes on the 2009 Victoria Film Festival
In non-Hollywood cinema, there’s less emphasis placed on svelte figures and chiseled cheekbones. But that doesn’t mean the physical form can’t play just as significant a role on-screen.
Thursday, November 6 2008
The Man Who Wasn't There: Wrestling with Oliver Stone's W. and the Enigma of George W. Bush
Stone doesn't "get" Bush’s true historical legacy (any more than the rest of us do in 2008), but he cannily realizes that, warts and all, Bush is an undeniably pivotal figure.
Friday, October 24 2008
Not Fade Away: Notes on the 27th Vancouver International Film Festival
The films at this year's VIFF were dominated by the idea of memory -- how it works, why it works the way it does, why certain events linger in our brain or come back to haunt us.
Friday, December 14 2007
The Best Pop-Country of 2007
Purists may turn up their noses at pop-country, but it produced more top-shelf music this past year than the stricter formal traditions on which it draws.
Wednesday, December 5 2007
Not a Saint (Just a Living Legend)
Lil Wayne is the best rapper in the game, and through a brilliant proliferation of mixtapes and guest spots, he's proven to be the definition of finding treasure in the journey on the way to a proper album destination.
Reviews
Thursday, July 31 2008
Miley Cyrus: Breakout
Hannah Montana is a squeaky clean cipher of mega stardom – a perfect dream of pop, if you will, as seemingly removed in lifestyle and behavior from real pop singers as, say, Batman or Superman are from your run-of-the-mill city cop.
Friday, December 14 2007
Master P: Featuring…Master P
Gangsta rap stumbled somewhere between Biggie and Jeezy. This collection is a lumbering reminder of that dry spell.
Thursday, December 13 2007
Bonde do Rolê: With Lasers
Regardless of the state of baile funk in the North American blogosphere, Bonde do Role is soldiering on and they deserve a fair shake.
Monday, December 10 2007
Deborah Harry: Necessary Evil
Deborah Harry's first solo album in 14 years is mostly awful, a depressing example of an artist failing at the very things she used to better at than anybody else.
