Leisure

Reviews and think pieces on music, movies, art, and theater.

Leisure

Foreign films come home

This weekend the “Global Glimpses” film festival, only in its second year of operation, will screen all five foreign films nominated this year for an Academy Award. The festival aims... Read more

By February 12, 2009

Leisure

Aphrodisiacs

In Act II of Macbeth, a porter, who had been “carousing till the second cock,” tells MacDuff that drink “provokes the desire, but takes away the performance,” a phenomenon known... Read more

By February 12, 2009

Leisure

Naked heart

If PDA and public nudity are not on your agenda for Valentine’s Day, maybe they should be. Whether you’re flying solo this year or still chugging along with last year’s... Read more

By February 12, 2009

Leisure

Cheap date: Valentine’s Day on the hilltop

For an ant mound populated by 12,000 20-somethings, Georgetown has a startling lack of PDA. Maybe that’s a good thing (do you really want to see the kids from model... Read more

By February 12, 2009

Leisure

Critical Voices: Dark Was The Night

4AD’s decision to greenlight Dark Was the Night, curated by the National’s Aaron and Bryce Dessner, must have been all too easy: great lineup, 32 exclusive tracks, and a great... Read more

By February 12, 2009

Leisure

Critical Voices: The Pains of Being Pure at Heart

It’s no secret that I’m predisposed to the dreamy synth-pop pining of loves lost and romantic weekend getaways. The mellowed indie-pop of Hefner and Jets to Brazil raised me to... Read more

By February 12, 2009

Leisure

What’s a girl to do?

In “What’s a Girl to Do When It’s Time to Put Down the Drink?,” which opened Wednesday night at the H Street Playhouse, sole actress Tara Handron openly explores the... Read more

By February 12, 2009

Leisure

The heart and fist of a revolutionary

The two-part film Che, an epic biography of Cuban Revolutionary leader Che Guevara, falls short of its expected epic proportions—though it is arguably better for it. In a decisive rebellion... Read more

By February 5, 2009

Leisure

So you want to catch an Albanian sex trafficker?

At one point in Taken, when told by an old-friend-turned-cynical-police-chief that he’ll never find his daughter, Brian Mills (Liam Neeson) threatens that he will stop at nothing to save her,... Read more

By February 5, 2009

Leisure

A gallery of Vices

The National Portrait Gallery is an odd museum among D.C.’s many Smithsonian gems. For a hall full of paintings, it isn’t particularly concerned with any particular Art Historical ideas, and... Read more

By February 5, 2009

Leisure

Z-Burger makes a saucy patty

If you’re craving a burger but you’re sick of the same old places around campus, think about venturing to Glover Park to grab a bite at Z-Burger. An updated version... Read more

By February 5, 2009

Leisure

Vinyl is better

There’s no denying the economy is in the pits, so what should you do with that last wad of cash stashed in your underwear drawer? Invest in a turntable and... Read more

By February 5, 2009

Leisure

Good die young

A few years ago, I began to realize that following television was very different from being a fan of most other mediums. There is no chance that when you go... Read more

By February 5, 2009

Leisure

Critical Voices: Beirut

From eastern European gypsy-folk to French chamber pop, Beirut’s Zach Condon finds inspiration in odd places. Yet he’s always been able to fuse his disparate influences into coherent records dripping... Read more

By February 5, 2009

Leisure

Vroooooom show

More than just a means for transportation, cars in America have long served as indicators of status and as treasured collectibles. Celebrities always flaunt their auto collections on MTV’s “Cribs,”... Read more

By February 5, 2009

Leisure

DC Shorts

For the past six years, one festival has been bringing the District’s short film lovers their heart’s desire: The DC Shorts Film Festival. Moviemaker Magazine praised the festival as “one... Read more

By February 5, 2009

Leisure

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,... Read more

By January 29, 2009

Leisure

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... Read more

By January 29, 2009

Leisure

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... Read more

By January 29, 2009

Leisure

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... Read more

By January 29, 2009