Weezer’s 13th studio album is experimental, but not for the sake of experimenting. Accurately embodied in their masked appearance on the album cover, “Weezer (Black Album)” is almost unrecognizable as a Weezer album. The band forfeits the characteristically gritty, unrefined tone of prior albums for an underwhelming attempt at conformity to an “experimental” modern pop […]
Category Archives: Arts Columns
Movie review: Hysteric cinematography makes dance-horror film ‘Climax’ disturbingly satisfying
Gaspar Noé’s “Climax” is a wild roller coaster ride of sex, drugs and techno. The French filmmaker’s latest movie follows the supposedly true story of a French dance troupe practicing for a tour at a remote boarding school in the 1990s. In celebration of a successful rehearsal, the dance practice transforms into a lively party […]
Theater review: Webber’s ‘Cats’ displays visual excellence mired in plot confusion
It’s pitch black. Not a sound can be heard when flickering lights suddenly illuminate the historical Hollywood Pantages Theatre. The mysterious dots grow across the auditorium. Performers donning frighteningly realistic cat costumes appear in the aisles, creeping slowly onto the stage. The theater is flooded in a technicolor splendor of neon lights, revealing a once […]
Second Take: ‘Green Book’ Oscar win drives home ignorance of racism’s complexity
“Blue Cadillac” would have been a more apt name for “Green Book” – the car is featured more prominently than the titular guide book, historically used to help black travelers find safe accommodations. While “Green Book” certainly wasn’t terrible, the contentious best picture is a flawed pick for the Oscars’ top award, especially in a […]
Budding Los Angeles: Agnetix’s innovative lights illuminate role of technology in cannabis cultivation
Thirty years ago, buying cannabis was difficult, expensive and illegal. Buying cannabis in 2019 is somewhere between picking up a prescription from a pharmacy and buying beer from a liquor store. Join columnist John Tudhope each week as he visits cannabis companies in Los Angeles and discusses the budding industry. Most people who visited […]
Second Take: List of best director nominees indicate gender inequity remaining in Hollywood
The number of female best director nominees throughout the 90-year history of the Oscars can be counted on one hand. Although Greta Gerwig’s 2018 nomination for “Lady Bird” seemed to indicate a shift from the Academy’s historical sexism, the 2019 nominees prove Hollywood’s glass ceiling has hardly been cracked. The all-male candidates – Spike Lee, […]
2019 Oscars predictions
The Academy shed its distaste for showy blockbuster films for the 2019 Oscars. The eight films nominated for best picture have grossed a combined total of $1.2 billion at the domestic box office – the highest-earning batch of nominees since 2011. While predictable political dramas “Vice” and “Green Book” are well within the Academy’s comfort […]