A lot of think pieces have been written about the declining necessity of movie theaters. They make my blood boil a little bit. I love the movie theater. Basically, every time I sit down in a movie theater feels like the goofy, pre-AMC-movie video where the kids are transported into a magical world while still […]
The worst thing you can say about The Wolf of Wall Street is that there’s too much of it. Thematically, though, that’s appropriate, since it’s all about the way that excess breeds excess, so it only makes sense that the movie be an indulgent orgy of Martin Scorsese’s best and worst cinematic impulses. Telling […]
I’m sure I’m not blowing anyone’s mind here when I say that David O. Russell is one of the greatest directors of our generation. He’s definitely in my personal top 5. And the biggest thing that links together O’Russell’s work, and which speaks to me personally, is his absolute dedication to characters who are trying […]
A while ago, while watching Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., I found myself seriously wondering if I was over superheroes. It’s blasphemy, I know. But I just felt like their stories had lost the ability to really entertain me. And I wonder if the whole Marvel thing – the ambitious, multi-picture, world-spanning insanity of it – was […]
At this point, it is boring for me to tell you that 12 Years a Slave is a fantastic movie. Still, spoiler-alert, it is. It’s not, by far, a perfect movie, but it is a fascinating one. At this point in time, the “slavery was bad” Oscar-bait film has become cliché, but that doesn’t […]
I don’t know that I can speak objectively about reading The Raven Boys, or its follow up The Dream Thieves. Since long commutes are a fact of life in southern california, and reading while driving a car tends to end badly, I listened to both on audiobooks. And they enraptured me. I fell deeply into […]
A good movie adaptation of a a good book teases something out of the text. It figures out what is important about the text, what has made it resonate with literary audiences for years. It takes a stand on what it’s adapting, and adds something to it besides just flesh and blood rendering. It’s on […]
When I learned that no one on the My Entertainment World staff was offering periodical write ups on the intrigue and messiness that is ABC’s Scandal, I thought, “well this is a travesty. Time put on the white hat and save the day.” And yes, that’s exactly the level of wit you can expect from […]