While watching the new film “Capote,” a stellar account of the struggles and successes experienced by writer Truman Capote during the composition of his seminal book “In Cold Blood,” I had two revelations. Revelation No. 1: Philip Seymour Hoffman is one of the most talented thespians in the business today. After enjoying his nuanced performance […]
Author Archives: Brendan Kearns
Complexity rules in film about family life
Sometimes brevity is impossible. Anyone seeking to summarize Noah Baumbach’s new film, “The Squid and the Whale,” quickly becomes acquainted with this fact. Above all, complexity prevails. The movie explores the collapse of a marriage, the impact of divorce on children, the strange and sometimes truly bizarre ways sexuality manifests itself at the entrance of […]
A sweeping change in women’s empowerment
At a recent family dinner, I was lamenting the challenge of writing a weekly entertainment column. “How about something on “˜Desperate Housewives’?” my mother suggested. “Maybe about how women love the show because it portrays females in control over the men in their lives,” she added, as my dad continued quietly eating his mashed potatoes. […]
Forget philosophy: Celeb gossip has real intellectual significance
A lot has been written about celebrity gossip in these pages, and for good reason. It provides harmless, easy-to-analyze topics of conversation ““ why discuss the ominous situation in North Korea when there are tensions on the set of “The O.C.”? It serves as a stress-free distraction from the occasional periods of monotony life can […]
Urban Outfitters aims to revive Village
When Urban Outfitters opened a new store in Westwood Village less than two weeks ago, the occasion was marked by enthusiasm in the community. “We are just overjoyed to be in the Village” said Urban Outfitters Department Manager Kate Woodruff, calling the initial reaction from customers to be “wonderful, absolutely wonderful.” “The sales have exceeded […]
Is UCLA in a “˜college town’?
Though it surrounds the UCLA campus, some feel that Westwood has lost its status as a “college town.” Before considering Westwood, though, one must find a suitable definition for the somewhat elusive term “college town.” Interpretations vary, but third-year Notre Dame student Stephanie Rosales provided one definition. “A college town is an area that is […]
Young’s oral history celebrated
History is marked by a few figures who ascend to leadership and dramatically reshape the institution under their guidance. Former UCLA Chancellor Charles Young is one of those rare individuals. Young was pivotal to the emergence of UCLA as an internationally recognized institution of higher learning, guiding the campus through a quarter century of unprecedented […]