Daily Archives: April 25, 2013
Lez’hur Ledger: Valentine 3-D rips out one writer’s ‘Real-D’ heart
I hate horror movies. If you asked me to explain, I’d probably offer all kinds of reasoned explanations as to why most straight-up “horror” films are generally lacking any merit, but I’ll cut the shit—I’m just easily frightened. I mean, I can take David Lynch-style spooks, but don’t give me plausible scenarios about men with [...]
An animated Waltz through post-war trauma
Waltz with Bashir, an animated documentary, follows director Ari Folman’s poignant journey to retrieve his lost memories as an Israeli soldier during the Israel-Lebanon war of 1982. Folman brilliantly taps into the psychology of post-war trauma filtering through memory and history. The director also takes both a personal and historical angle on the devastating massacre [...]
Darwin blooms
“Orchids Through Darwin’s Eyes,” the Smithsonian’s 15th Annual Orchid Exhibit, brings a fresh perspective to the horticulture of the most diverse flowering plants in the world. Their beauty and boundless variations alone justify the existence of such an exhibit. But when looked at through the keen eyes of the scientists and naturalists whose research plaster [...]
Something’s funny about The Foreigner
Tackling the Klu Klux Klan, marriage, manipulation of religion, and emotional insecurity is ambitious. Trying to make the audience laugh at the same time is an even greater undertaking. Though Mask & Bauble’s The Foreigner overextends itself with unwieldy themes and uneven presentation, an earnest cast and several skillful comedic performances ultimately redeem the play. [...]
Books for the indigent
Now that everyone is poor, recessionistas have discovered something cheapskates have known about for a long time: libraries. Even Carrie Bradshaw saw fit to snuggle up with a library book between her $4,000 dollar sheets in Sex and the City: The Movie. However, libraries are only a good place to get books if you can [...]
Drink to health
I had a Russian teacher in high school who told the class that in Russia, the fool proof home remedy for any ailment was a big ol’ shot of vodka. It clears the congestion immediately, she told us. I laughed; her people also swim outside in Moscow winters to stay healthy—they surely are not to [...]
The outsider
The exhibition “Looking In: Robert Frank’s The Americans” at the National Gallery couldn’t have come to D.C. at a more appropriate time. The Americans, one of the most important photography books of the post-WWII era, revealed American society beneath the 1950s’ superficial optimism encapsulated by consumerism and idolatry. Frank rebelled against the classic icons of [...]
Critical Voices: Zion-I
Zion-I has always been one of the more schizophrenic California hip-hop groups, as their albums jump from Cali-hyphy style raps to self-righteous hip-hop ballads. On their newest effort, The Take Over, Zion-I shows its roots in songs featuring back pack rapper Brother Ali and the eternally blunted Devin the Dude, while simultaneously breaking out into [...]
Critical Voices: Telepathe
My first run-in (or rather, almost run-in) with Telepathe was this past fall, when they were part of the oddly assembled Mad Decent Tour (dance DJ Diplo, tropical noise-punksters Abe Vigoda, and these psychedelic synth-poppers too?). I’m glad I missed them (thanks for being a terrible pre-game choice, Bailey’s!)—what I’ve heard about their live show [...]
Faculty clash over Gaza
Given Georgetown’s claim to housing the nation’s premier Arab studies program, the rising prominence of the Program for Jewish Civilization, and the highly politicized atmosphere of Washington, D.C., it’s no surprise that the conflict in Gaza has provoked a great deal of interest on campus.
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