Leisure

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

Leisure

Critical Voices

The Unicorns are pop music, in the way that makes you want to give music one more chance. A much maligned institution, pop is so overabundant that we’re almost justified in taking extreme measures with the entire genre. But before we had to do something drastic (prog-rock ain’t worth it kids), Canada came to our rescue.

By the December 4, 2003

Leisure

Critical Voices

The bored, angry masses of America’s white suburban youth should be disappointed by the release of Thursday’s lackluster new album, War All the Time. Coming off their subtlely powerful last effort, Full Collapse, they aimed for a higher, more beautiful sound-and fell flat on their face.

By the December 4, 2003

Leisure

Museum that

Even though it contains both my first and last names, the Smithsonian Institute and the fleet of museums that bear its name just don’t cut it anymore. Museum of Natural History, spare us the giant squid, please-not interested. And the Hope Diamond? How very Home Shopping Network of you.

By the December 4, 2003

Leisure

Japanese basic cable round-up

LEISURE BY SCOTT MATTHEWS Tired of lame sitcoms and lowest-common-denominator television programming? Probably not. You are their target audience, after all. But if the usual life-wasting entertainment is starting to wear thin, then clearly the only answer is to move to Japan for its rich array of quality television shows.

By the November 20, 2003

Leisure

Jay-Z: the blinged-out Che Guevara

Shawn Carter-the artist variously known as Jay-Z, Jigga, Jay-Hova, Hovito, Young ‘Hov, Young, S “Dot” Carter or simply Jay-is a lot smarter than you think.

You probably know he’s one of the best rappers but don’t really understand why. You probably think he only talks about “money, cash, and hoes,” but love his style anyway.

By the November 20, 2003

Leisure

Winged Migration soars

Having trouble appreciating the ubiquitous Canadian goose? Usurping many suburban parks with their squawking and their droppings, these creatures seem more American than the neglected bald eagle. In the Oscar-nominated documentary Winged Migration, , French director Jacques Perrin succeeds in making the Canadian goose and his feathered friends not only inoffensive, but beautiful.

By the November 20, 2003

Leisure

Critical Voices

Few former elementary school teachers and certifiable drunks can claim to have had as much of an effect upon independent music as Robert Pollard. As the one-man creative engine behind the indie rock legend Guided By Voices, Pollard has been one of the most prolific artists of the last fifteen years.

By the November 20, 2003

Leisure

T-givin’ Truths

“Thanksgiving only comes once a year.” How true that is! How true, and how sweet. But you know what? Waiting for Thanksgiving is boring. every year, the Georgetown campus becomes a wasteland for the four-to-five day weekend when thousands upon thousands of Hoyas clear out for points west, south, north, and possibly even east (for you European exchange students).

By the November 20, 2003

Leisure

‘The Cradle’ rockxxx

LEISURE BY JULIA COOKE As 8 p.m. comes and goes, the audience gossips audibly and cast members chat among themselves onstage. Murmurs of “I’m so confused” grow louder as actors wander offstage to offer refreshments and chat with the audience. Poulton Hall has become a different kind of theater, one in which the comfort of the audience is paramount.

By the November 13, 2003

Leisure

Lunafest promises to satisfy

This Monday in Leavey Center Conference Room, Luna Bar and the Georgetown Women’s Rugby team will hopefully show why every energy bar should have a film festival. PowerBar’s festival, for example, would stop at auto shows across the country from Detroit to Newark, screening Die Hard and Terminator and giving special honors Arnold Schwarzenegger and Jean Claude Van Damme.

By the November 13, 2003

Leisure

Critical Voices

The Doves: Lost Sides Atmosphere: Seven’s Travels

By the November 13, 2003

Leisure

Bollywood and tradition intermingle

Rangila, the South Asian Society’s annual festival, has become no less than a phenomenon since its inception eight years ago. The show, which hits Gaston this Friday and Saturday, sold out both nights in a mere fifteen minutes, breaking not only last year’s one show record of 30 minutes, but that of virtually any other event on campus.

By the November 13, 2003

Leisure

Brunchy Bunch

Every Sunday morning, my roommates and I bake scones. By “morning” I mean 1p.m. And by “my roommates and I bake scones,” I mean they watch as I throw ingredients into a bowl, mix and bake them. We sit around the kitchen table-last Sunday until four in the afternoon-trying to pretend that we have nowhere else to be.

By the November 13, 2003

Leisure

‘Trojan Women’ evokes grief

LEISURE BY NEAL COLL Did you wake up this morning just a little bit too happy? Do you need a downer to provide balance to your far too cheerful life? If schoolwork and the creeping approach of the dreary winter months have done little to curb your sunny disposition and unquenchable optimism, save yourself from the dirty vengeful looks of your roommates by seeing Nomadic Theatre’s latest production, The Trojan Women.

By the November 6, 2003

Leisure

‘Die, Mommie, Die’ an exercise in dysfunction

Take a closer look at that character’s over-styled hair, ‘60s getup, and obvious make up. She’s wearing a pearl necklace, but is that an adam’s apple? Die, Mommie, Die, the latest endeavor of the prolific on-screen crossdresser, writer-director Charles Busch, is distinct from other 60s parodies: Our leading lady is a flamboyant drag queen.

By the November 6, 2003

Leisure

Questions linger in ‘Zero Day’

One would think that a film ending with the image of two burning crosses might have some poignant conclusion to communicate to its audience. However, as the credits roll at the end of Zero Day, most questions remain unanswered. In fact, an entirely new question arises: Why do people keep making Columbine movies that give you the ingredients for disaster but fail to pinpoint an explanation? Zero Day is not like Michael Moore’s Bowling for Columbine, a piece of political and social commentary.

By the November 6, 2003

Leisure

New Jersey redeems itself

As a life long resident of the Garden State, I can safely say that most of the stereotypes about my fatherland are woefully true. We have odious pollution, an overabundance of suburban apathy and angst, some of the most corrupt, crime-ridden cities in the country, and far too many speed traps on the Parkway.

By the November 6, 2003

Leisure

B’more charming

It’s official—Washington D.C. again holds the coveted title of murder capital of the United States. The FBI’s annual crime index released this monday ranked the District first nationwide in homicides for the first time since the early ‘90s.

By the November 6, 2003

Leisure

Ryan Adams: folk rock rebel?

With so many hypersensitive singer-songwriters on the market, it’s inevitable that artists like John Mayer, Howie Day and David Gray might seem interchangeable. But then there’s good ol’ Ryan Adams, a once countrified-alt-geek of Whiskeytown fame.

By the November 6, 2003

Leisure

‘Without Me’ reflects on loss of self

LEISURE BY ABBY LAVIN A few minutes into My Life Without Me audience members may get the sense that something is a bit unusual. With its gloomy setting, odd inflections in the actors’ voices, and a vaguely unsettling atmosphere, the movie seems to be taking place in some sort of alternate universe. Gradually, it all begins to make sense: It’s Canadian.

By the October 30, 2003