Film, Music, Visual Arts

Oscar Nominee The Taste of Things is Abundant with Passion

        One of the feature films shown at the 2023 St. Louis International Film Festival, which has just wrapped, was The Taste of Things. Under its French title, La Passion de Dodin Bouffant, the film won Trần Anh Hùng the Best Director award this year at Cannes and is the French submission […]

When Childhood Trading Cards and History Lessons Collide

        Two score and some odd years ago, when my second-grade friends and I tumbled out the doors of Missoula’s Lewis and Clark Elementary, Wacky Packages were for months on end our sole reason for a trip to the nearby Circle K convenience store. Clutching our spare change so hard that the […]

Evil Finds Horror in the Everyday—Then Laughs at It

    Horror is a genre I avoid. Halloween used to make it palatable, shrinking the monsters and taming irrational fears into catharsis. Then we grew scared of our own rituals. Rosy apples held razor blades! Candy was poisoned! Neighborhood kids now go to the Baptists’ Trunk or Treat instead of knocking on people’s doors, […]

How a Millais Painting Wages Elegant Battle against Climate Change

        For anyone who adores the fall season, there is something of a child’s disappointment at Christmas delayed when, after months of brutal heat and humidity, the first week of October lands in temperatures near the high 80s. There are few if any, golden and amber-red leaves for nature to unwrap on […]

Why the Clothes of My Past Stay Closeted

    In a recent New York Times column, fashion editor Vanessa Friedman fielded a nervous question about whether older women could wear vintage. “Whatever clothes you remember from your own youth will look different through the lens of now,” she pointed out. “You have changed over the years, as has your body. What may […]

All-American Models Rescued from Oblivion

    “Build and Be Happy!” says the website for Atlantis Models, a company that has rescued many of the ship, airplane, and car models that American kids grew up building for generations. “Building models can be an artistic discovery and a journey through history.” Atlantis was found in 2009 by the former owners of […]

Guardians of the Galaxy’s Knowhere Citizen #65

      Sixteen months ago I worked as an extra on the third installment of Guardians of the Galaxy movie. It has just been released, and we went to see it opening weekend. Sitting down in the theater with a tub of popcorn and a Diet Coke, I felt like my elder son who, […]

The New Who: Brexit By Any Other Name

Doctor Who, “Demons of the Punjab” Series 11, Episode 6 Written by Vinay Patel Directed by Jamie Childs Starring Jodie Whittaker, Tosin Cole, Mandip Gill, and Bradley Walsh. Guest Starring Leena Dhingra, Hamza Jeetooa, Amita Suman, and Shane Zaza Original Broadcast 11 November 2018 (50 minutes)     “Demons of the Punjab,” the sixth episode […]

The New Who: Spider Night

Doctor Who, “Arachnids in the UK” Series 11, Episode 4 Written by Chris Chibnall Directed by Sallie Aprahamian Starring Jodie Whittaker, Tosin Cole, Mandip Gill, and Bradley Walsh Guest Starring Sharon D. Clarke, Shobna Gulati, Tanya Fear, and Chris Noth Original Broadcast 28 October 2018 (50 minutes)     With “Arachnids in the UK,” showrunner […]

The New Who: The Marvelous Mrs. Parks

Doctor Who, “Rosa” Series 11, Episode 3 Written by Malorie Blackman and Chris Chibnall Directed by Mark Tonderai Starring Jodie Whittaker, Tosin Cole, Mandip Gill, and Bradley Walsh Guest Starring Vinette Robinson, Joshua Bowman, and Trevor White Original Broadcast 21 October 2018 (49 minutes)     Everything you have heard about “Rosa,” the brilliant third […]