Yesterday, I went to see Midnight Special more or less on a whim— I wanted to be out of the apartment for the day and it was too chilly to sit outside. I was blown away. The kid is absolutely incredible— neither too cutesy or too robotic. He's sweet and vulnerable, but has an incredibly mature and commanding presence,…

Thursday night, I got to see one of my all-time favorite musicians, Paul Burch, play a solo set in support of his new album. I've been a fan of his for years, and he rarely tours outside Nashville, so when I saw he was going to be here I knew I had to go. The album, called Meridian Rising, is a collection of songs…

This sounds really cool (also didn't realize she did 35 Shots of Rum; that's been on the list for ages). And I really appreciate the mention of Odds Against Tomorrow— I've only seen it all the way through once, but it made a deep impression on me and I wish more people knew about it.

I love Night of the Lepus! My brother showed it to me years ago and we laughed the whole way through.

Yesterday, I went to see Embrace of the Serpent. While I would agree with Ignatiy that some of the symbolism is pretty heavy-handed, it didn't take away from my enjoyment. It's strange and haunting and beautiful, and I'm glad I saw it. If it's playing near you, I recommend it highly. It was funny in a way, because…

Well, I'm starting in the middle of the week again. Wednesday night, I went to see Ezra Furman and The Boyfriends in concert, and I had an absolutely fantastic time. Furman is an entertainer in the best sense of the word— great dancer, funny banter between songs, and of course his incredibly raw, emotional voice. And…

He is definitely one to savor; I find myself re-reading sentences or paragraphs over and over again just to appreciate how good they are. Sometimes if no one's around, I'll even read out loud. It does make me wish that I was actually fluent in French— I can read a little, but not on his level, and the translations are…

I'm supposed to be reviewing it for another site (actually should be working on that now, heh); it hasn't quite grabbed me the way Oshin did, and there are a few tracks in the middle section that feel like filler, but when it's good ("Take Your Time", "Under the Sun", and "Dopamine"), it's as good as anything they've…

My big pop-culture event of the week happened on Tuesday, but I'm including it here and you squares can't stop me! To heck with the establishment, daddy-o… Ahem. Anyway. I saw that the Film Forum was having a celebration of the Coen brothers, in advance of Hail Caesar! (which I anticipate seeing very soon). I suppose,…

I'm in NYC (Brooklyn); I don't have a car and don't need to be anywhere out of walking distance until tomorrow, so I'm counting myself stupidly lucky (and young and oblivious &c).

I probably would have done it anyway, but the blizzard gave me the perfect excuse to sit down and re-watch Lawrence of Arabia (this is maybe the fourth time I've seen it all the way through). It felt almost criminal to watch it on my laptop; I'd pay good money to see it in a real auditorium. But it remains one of my…

Yes, that's another one that caught my eye this time around. It's so quick, but it says so much.

Movies: Friday, I had planned to see Brooklyn, but I came down with a terrible headache during my last hour at the office and decided it would be better if I just went home. I ended up re-watching Drive, for only the second time since I saw it in the theater. Few other films have imprinted themselves so strongly on my…

Yeah, the whole Caleb scenario was infuriating, on so many levels. But there were a lot of things I liked— I thought the first 100 pages or so were really strong (I'm a 20-something making a go of it in New York, and it's one of the better depictions of that life that I've read).

I'm actually glad (for your sake) that you had a more positive experience with A Little Life than I did; for some reason, it really upset me, so much that I took it back to the store so I wouldn't have to look at it. I mean, on one hand, I have to respect a book that gets me so emotionally invested in the characters,…

He was a fraud— as I recall, he was brought in with burns on his face, so they couldn't tell what he looked like, and he had known the actual heir, but at some point, his story fell apart. I don't remember the exact details, unfortunately— maybe he used the wrong fork at dinner or something. And this is Downton, where…

I do think it's partly for appearance's sake; he wants to be seen being good with the children so that they'll keep him around (though as the review said, considering that it's been 12 years and he still hasn't been fired, he's probably safe— and anyway, he knows too much).

I really, really, desperately hope that this is the end of the Mr. Greene storyline. But I found myself almost unable to enjoy the party scene because I kept thinking "Remember, this is Downton. Anytime Bates or Anna say that they're happy, something dreadful is bound to happen, and very soon."

Well, I rang in the new year seeing DIIV at Bowery Ballroom, which is probably my favorite venue in the city. I'm excited for their upcoming album— they seemed on the verge of fading away altogether for a while, but the songs I've heard so far are all as good as anything on Oshin. The concert was fun, although having…

The Battle of Algiers is one of my all-time favorites; I saw it for the first time in a college class on post-colonial Africa, and was absolutely hooked. That sequence where the women plant the bombs is just stunning— we're ostensibly rooting for them, but the movie does not shy away from the nastiness of what they're…