— by BEV QUESTAD — It is commonly assumed that public universities are solely financed through student tuition and state taxpayer support. Sure, there are grants from foundations, overhead payments from research contracts, and so on, but many have envisioned our universities as pure bast[...]
Archive for the ‘Reviews’ Category
Under Review: ‘Catfish’
— by ADAM POYNTER — “Don’t let anyone tell you what it is” the tagline for “Catfish” and this is very true. Your entire enjoyment of this particular film is in not knowing where the storyline is headed. So this will be a brief review and I won’t ruin the movie for others, I&#[...]
Under Review: ‘The Town’
— by ADAM POYNTER — Charlestown is a blue-collar neighborhood in Massachusetts and crime can be a way of life there. Families pass down their knowledge and status in the crime syndicate like it’s an antique family heirloom. Doug MacRay (Ben Affleck) is a smart and intuitive guy. He als[...]
Under Review: ‘Vanishing on 7th Street’
— by KYLA DREWETTE — Directed by Brad Anderson, “Vanishing on 7th Street” is a post-apocalyptic survivor story. A mysterious blackout has caused the disappearance of the most of the world’s population, leaving only piles of deflated clothing behind. Days later, strange shadows and [...]
Under Review: ‘Super’
— by KYLA DREWETTE — Written and directed by James Gunn, “Super” hooks you in from the start. Beginning with the film’s opening credits – a colorful, bloody and crudely drawn cartoon that features the characters in a lively dance sequence – you know you’re about to witness so[...]
Under Review: ‘Secretariat’
— by ADAM POYNTER — Everybody loves an underdog story, whether it is a human or an animal. We have seen many stories about horses (fictional and fact), including “Seabiscuit,” “Flicka” and “Dreamer.” These are all tales of exceptional horses, and all movies I have seen[...]
Under Review: ‘Resident Evil: Afterlife’
— by JESSIKA OWENS — The Umbrella Corporation is back in full swing. Alice and Claire, however, are not. “Resident Evil: Afterlife” strips the female duo down to the bare bones of their existence, and it kind of works. I say “kind of” because the film was complete[...]
Under Review: ‘The American’
— by MARIUSZ ZUBROWSKI — George Clooney, who usually uses his physical appearance and inborn charisma, makes a very different and thus perplexing turn as Jack in “The American.” The film ironically won’t please or entertain most American audiences, simply because we, as Americans, [...]
Under Review: ‘A Small Act’
— by BEV QUESTAD — Preparing homework by candlelight, living without electricity, and intermittently missing school to harvest coffee beans, Kimani has still been the top student at a rural elementary school in Kenya where a little bell is rung by hand to begin classes each day. Then the[...]
Under Review: ‘Machete’
— by MARIUSZ ZUBROWSKI — It took a sick imagination, critical acclaim for the film’s faux-trailer beginnings in “Grindhouse,” and time away from directing garbage such as “Shorts” for Robert Rodriguez to finally get off his butt and finally helm “Mache[...]
Under Review: ‘The Tillman Story’
— by MARIUSZ ZUBROWSKI — I won’t even pretend to know anything about politics. Simple as that – I refuse to embarrass myself and treat my readers like idiots. But although I have this inescapable belief (or perhaps insecurity) that my follow writer Bev Questad would make much more fo[...]
Under Review: ‘Avatar: Special Edition’
— by MARIUSZ ZUBROWSKI — At this point, I think it’s safe to say that James Cameron’s “Avatar” has surpassed Wal-Mart, fluorescent light bulbs and baby leashes on the scale of popularity. It has accumulated more than a billion dollars worth of profit since its release back in Dec[...]
Under Review: ‘The Experiment’
— by MARIUSZ ZUBROWSKI — “The Experiment” is the type of the film that you watch when you’re just fed up with people in general. Its nihilist message will surely make you feel better about yourself because it just reinforces the belief that our fellow man is on the same scale as wi[...]