Andrew Rostan was a film student before he realized that making comics was his horrible destiny, but he’s never shaken his love of cinema. Every two weeks, he’ll opine on either current pictures or important movies from the past.
It is almost impossible to write this piece without SPOILERS, especially since most people know the story already. But just in case, be warned.
The Decemberists celebrated the release of their new album, “What A Terrible World, What A Beautiful World,” with a performance in Portland January 20, the day it came out. The city declared it “Decemberists Day,” and the mayor presented the band with a custom quilt made of squares representing local artists and businesses. This pageantry is possibly nauseating to some, but wonderful to me, because I love Portland, and I love the Decemberists.
The holidays are behind us, the novelty of the new year has worn off, but we in the Midwest are still left with the season’s cold weather. If this year is anything like the last, we might even get another visit from the polar vortex, which is way less exciting than its name implies.
And far less exciting than the Snowpocalypse.
Rather than let our spirits plummet along with the temperatures, the season is a perfect time to invite friends and family over for a few hot cocktails. A lot of these are aromatic, and their recipes are often flexible enough to allow us to riff on the traditional version of the cocktails. As with last month’s look at New Year’s Eve drinks, the goal is to provide you with templates, using specific recipes as examples.
Put on a kettle of water, and let’s warm up with some tasty libations.
Chicago has mastered many things. Deep dish pizza. Hot dogs. Architecture. Beer. While arguments for the Mississippi Delta and Kansas City might be heard, it should be argued that the blues ranks highly among those cultural features.
Buddy Guy’s Legends was opened in 1989 by blues master Buddy Guy and remains one of the liveliest blues clubs in the city – if not one of the only ones remaining in operation. Located in the middle of the South Loop, it is a destination for both locals and tourists alike. Blues masters regularly make appearances to pay homage to the city that gave the country Chess Records, that introduced Muddy Waters, Little Walter, and Howling Wolf to a wider audience. And every January, Mr. Buddy Guy himself makes a residency, sticking around town for the entire month.
I am loving the glut of new shows airing that are focused on telling women’s stories. There’s Broad City, Girls, Benched, Outlander, Orphan Black, The Good Wife, Veep, and Homeland, just to name a few. And, of course, the big hit Orange is the New Black. But what do you watch when that is on break? While browsing Netflix, I happened upon a newer show from Australia, called Wentworth. It follows a group of women as they navigate the prison system. Sound familiar? [Read more…]
Selma, the new biopic about Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., is a great film about one of the greatest Americans who has ever lived. It focuses on King’s efforts to organize the 1965 marches from Selma to Birmingham in Alabama in protest of that state’s suppression of African Americans’ right to vote. The film is a well-staged and emotionally overwhelming recreation of that tumultuous moment in American history. It is also, in ways both stirring and sad, a film full of relevance to American life in 2015. It should be seen by everyone. [Read more…]
Andrew Rostan was a film student before he realized that making comics was his horrible destiny, but he’s never shaken his love of cinema. Every two weeks, he’ll opine on either current pictures or important movies from the past. Today he’s joined by fellow film student Alex Bean to opine on the 87th Academy Award nominations.
There’s something wrong with this picture…
In the beginning, there were dungeons, and there were dragons. And it was good.
I’m oversimplifying it, but the old formula is still fun in modern d20-style fantasy role-playing games. There’s a reason the grand-daddy of RPGs invokes them in the name of its game.
Dungeons & Dragons is playing to the “dragons” half of the equation with its ongoing “Tyranny of Dragons” campaign. But if you’re looking for a compelling version of the “dungeon” half of the formula, the 13th Age system is releasing a new campaign book in February, Eyes of the Stone Thief. (A PDF copy of the book is available if you pre-order it, which is what I’m using to plumb its depths.)
Courtesy of Gareth Ryder-Hanrahan and Pelgrane Press, this book takes the idea of the dungeon-based campaign and gives it a Yakov Smirnoff reversal. In most campaigns, players will hunt for dungeons; in Eyes of the Stone Thief, dungeon hunts you! [Read more…]
Broad City is the best feminist show on television. That’s a big statement, but I’ll stand by it.
This 30-minute Comedy Central show tells simple stories about Abbi (Abbi Jacobson) and Ilana (Ilana Glazer), two women in their early twenties who are best friends living in New York City, with crazy roommates, dead end jobs, and no money. It doesn’t try to be anything more than this, and by not making huge statements it hits on something very special. [Read more…]
Foxcatcher is a good movie. It is well-mounted, with impeccable cinematography and production design. The acting is superb and is headlined by one of those showy disappearing-act performances that should gobble up attention and awards. The story handles some weighty themes with a deft and incisive touch. But you’re probably not going to see it, and that’s fine. It’s just one of those movies that’s good, but fails to gain any traction outside of cinephile circles.
The foundation of the film certainly sounds like something that could be a minor hit. An awards-baity teaming of Bennett Miller, who was Oscar-nominated for directing Capote, Megan Ellison, the Silicon Valley scion who has become Hollywood’s most consistent auteur-enabler over the past few years, and three actors–Steve Carell, Channing Tatum, and Mark Ruffalo–going serious after becoming A-listers with lighter fare. The story concerns the unhealthy relationships between John Eleuthère du Pont (Carrell), a socially maladjusted chemical fortune heir, and the pair of wrestling star brothers, Dave and Mark Schultz (Ruffalo and Tatum), who become drawn into his world. The film seems split into two halves, exploring how Mark grapples with his feelings of insufficiency and anger first against the aloof splendor of du Pont and then with the disappointing familiarity of Dave. [Read more…]