Movie review: ‘The ABCs of Death’

“The ABCs of Death” is a bad movie – and some may find that endearing. An ambitious anthology that culls 26 short films from 26 international directors, “The ABCs of Death” is exactly what its title implies: juvenility posed against morbidity. As with most anthology films, there are gems and there are clunkers; for this […]

“Beyond the Hills” plays with genres

Cristian Mungiu’s Palme d’Or-winning second feature, “4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days,” an intimate drama of two friends forced to seek extralegal abortion under Communist rule, played better as a thriller than a message movie. The same curious quality informs Mungiu’s follow-up, “Beyond the Hills,” a gripping depiction of a remote Romanian monastery that similarly falls short of making a statement.

Album Review: ‘Cerulean Salt’ by Waxahatchee

Punk rock is dead, punk rock is dying, punk rock died surviving. In a year when the genre threatens to crash at full throttle back into the mainstream (or at least pseudo-mainstream), from the anguished roar of Pissed Jeans to the wheezing desperation of Iceage, the quieter anguish of Waxahatchee’s “Cerulean Salt” could easily be […]

Album review: ‘II’ by Unknown Mortal Orchestra

Unknown Mortal Orchestra’s self-titled first album recalled the deceptively pleasant pop of what had seemed a lost music: melodic guitar phrasing, Lennon-tinged vocals, a haze of noise and above all, insanely catchy tunes (see “Ffunny Ffriends”). But with its second album, the aptly-titled “II,” it’s almost impossible not to get a “White Album” vibe: The […]