If you’ve been online at all these past few weeks, you’ve likely noticed a lot of people screaming and crying about the upcoming TikTok ban. TikTok, the social media platform famous for bite-size clips of people dancing, pulling pranks, and making videos of obviously disgusting food in the name of…
Booker Prize Roundup and Predictions
The Booker Prize is one of the most prestigious awards in the world of English literature. Every year, a team of judges compile a longlist of 12 to 13 novels originally published in English. This list is parred down to a a shortlist of six finalists, and from that a…
“Joker: Folie à Deux” Review: A Flatfooted Sequel that Strikes a Sour Notes
Director: Todd PhillipsStarring: Joaquin Phoenix, Lady GagaRuntime: 138 minutesRating: 2 / 5 When “Joker” came out 5 years ago, it felt like a breath of fresh air. Sure, it was technically a “comic book movie” since the titular character was from DC Comics’s “Batman” series. But it was an original…
What’s Up with That?: Presidential Debate
Hello, Dear Reader! Today, for our inaugural entry for our What’s Up With That? series, we’re going to take a look at the upcoming debate between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump. Okay, so catch me up. What’s happened since the last debate? I haven’t really been paying attention… Well, it’s…
“Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” Review: Tim Burton Resurrects Beetlejuice for a Kooky, Comedic Sequel
Director: Tim BurtonStarring: Michael Keaton, Winona Ryder, Catherine O’Hara, Justin Theroux, Monica Bellucci, Jenna Ortega, and Willem DafoeRuntime: 104 minutesRating: 3.5 / 5 In a summer overstuffed with sequels and reboots, it’s easy to feel disillusioned. Many of these films feel a bit like zombies – dumb, lifeless, with plots…
New Tech is Bringing New Tests for Schools. So Far, Schools are Failing.
The end of August is here, and for millions of students across the country, that means the start of a new school year. Parents are buying new notebooks and school bags, teachers are decorating classrooms and finalizing first week lesson plans, and students are scrambling to complete summer book reports…
The Best of America in an India Day Parade
Last Sunday, Midtown Manhattan was filled with the cacophony of bass drums and Bollywood beats as thousands of Indian-Americans gathered for the annual New York City India Day parade. It was an exciting opportunity to celebrate Indian heritage, and as thousands of men and women marched down Madison Avenue decked…
“Trap” Review: A Great Idea Ensnared in Plot Holes and Messy Logic
Director: M. Night ShyamalanStarring: Josh Hartnett, Ariel Donoghue, Saleka Night ShyamalanRuntime: 105 minutesRating: 2 / 5 M. Night Shyamalan has had an uneven career, to say the least. The writer-director burst onto the scene with early hits like “The Sixth Sense” and “Signs”, films that established the now-iconic “Shyamalan twist”….
“Borderlands” Review – A Film that Borders on Incomprehensible
Director: Eli RothStarring: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Hart, Jack Black, Edgar Ramírez, Ariana Greenblatt, Florian Munteanu, Jamie Lee CurtisRuntime: 102 minutesRating: 1.5 / 5 The annals of Hollywood film archives are filled with the graves of failed video game adaptations. Although there have been some occasional successes (HBO’s “The Last of…
“Deadpool & Wolverine” Review – Can Rynolds and Jackman Bring Marvel Back From the Dead?
It’s been a rough year or so for Marvel. Audiences are facing ‘superhero fatigue’ after the company’s unrelenting output, with many feeling that the endless stream of films and TV series has led to lower production quality and an increasingly complicated web of characters, relationships, and plots that even ardent…