Give me air conditioning or give me death
It has been so hot these past few weeks. I’m miserable. You’re miserable. The unfortunate souls sitting next to me in class that see me arrive drenched in sweat are miserable. It’s hot, and, unfortunately, the heat isn’t going away anytime soon. I live in the Foster Mods, which, like most housing on campus, don’t […]
“Joe Pera Talks With You” regrows your soul
Late night programming block Adult Swim has built its brand on off-color, caustic comedy, but earlier this summer, something completely different premiered: the sincere, meditative, and caring “Joe Pera Talks With You.” It’s an incredible work of empathy, rooted to an entirely unique character—the kind of show that just might make you feel better after […]
The best (and worst) of summer movies
Noah: You know what, Jonah, I think it was actually a good summer for movies. I think I tend to go see more arthouse/independent stuff, and I feel pretty satisfied with what I saw. There were quality movies coming out like every two weeks—it wasn’t like 2017, which, to me, seemed like a real drought […]
‘Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri’ is packed with emotions, yet parts of the plot remain uncertain
Noah: Last week we both went and saw “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri,” and I have to say we were both kind of floored by it. Just a little bit of set-up: It’s the third film by Irish playwright Martin McDonagh (“In Bruges,” “Seven Psychopaths”) and it starts off with a woman named Mildred Hayes, […]
Storytelling open-mic night presents students’ fascinating stories on misreading
“Everybody has stories that they don’t know they have within them,” said Brandeis English Professor David Sherman, who organized Tuesday’s Storytelling Open-Mic night with the English Undergraduate Departmental Representatives (UDR). “Giving each other space or situations to tell them is just really important,” he added. The event, held in Chum’s, had a cozy, intimate feel, […]
New Star Wars Battlefront II disappoints and fails to bring the fun
I love “Star Wars.” No matter how pretentious I pretend to be, I’ll always have a special place in my heart for Jedis and lightsabers. As a kid, I loved playing the video game “Star Wars Battlefront II.” It was the coolest thing ever: You could be a battle droid or a stormtrooper in essentially […]
A look at Brandeis Fine Arts professor Joe Wardwell’s piece in the MASS MoCA
“How much can a piece hold before it bursts apart?” Joe Wardwell asks, standing in front of his massive work of art. Wardwell’s piece, “Hello America: 40 Hits from the 50 States,” now on display at the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art (MASS MoCA), was specifically commissioned for its 100-foot-plus space. Last week, the Brandeis […]
Syrian artists blend music and painting in live performance, ‘Home Within’
Ghostly figures appear on the projector screen, their arms stretched up to the sky. A spotlight fades in on the center, highlighting the lone clarinetist who begins to play a slow, haunting melody. The image suddenly catches fire, and the entire painting is engulfed in flames. This is the beginning of the first movement, “a […]
Brandeis welcomes new director to the Rose
This past summer, Brandeis welcomed Luis A. Croquer to campus as the new Henry and Lois Foster Director of the Rose Art Museum. Croquer, originally from El Salvador, brings both international experience and an impressive knowledge of the art world to the Rose. I recently had the opportunity to speak with the new director about […]
Marvel’s ‘Thor: Ragnarok’ exceeds expectations
Jonah: So, “Thor: Ragnarok.” It’s pretty good. It’s easily the best of the solo “Thor” movies, but that’s a pretty low bar to surpass. If I had to rank it within the rest of the Marvel Cinematic Universe offerings, I’d say this is better than “Ant-Man” or “Guardians of the Galaxy 2,” but it’s not […]
‘The Florida Project,’ beautifully made with an enchanting story
Sean Baker’s films find stories in the unconventional, in the lives of people living on the fringes. His first film, “Tangerine,” shot entirely on iPhone, followed a day in the lives of two transgender prostitutes in Los Angeles, CA. His excellent follow-up, the newly-released “The Florida Project,” follows the lives of an impoverished young mother […]
BAMCO presents off campus bands DAP The Contract and Diaspøra in lively Chum’s concert
I haven’t really been a fan of the big live music concerts that we’ve had here on campus. In my last two and a half years here, we have yet to have an act deserving of the tens of thousands of dollars that we pay them to come here. Why does it seem like we […]
Brandeis alum Alicia Ostriker shares her poetry with community
I haven’t given poetry much consideration since grade school. I gave in to the stereotypes, thinking the medium was too flowery, insubstantial and abstract for me to ever understand. But poet Alicia Ostriker ’59, who read at Brandeis on Thursday, Oct. 19 in the Bethlehem Chapel, showed me just how valuable, relevant and necessary poetry […]
Rose fall opening celebration welcomes two more exhibitions
The Rose Art Museum hosted its Fall Opening Celebration to commemorate a new season of art exhibitions, on Saturday, Oct. 14. The event, free and open to the entire community, featured food trucks, a beer garden and an open art museum. It was great getting to see so many people come together to celebrate the […]
The brilliance behind FX comedy series ‘Better Things’
Last fall, two new high-profile comedies premiered on FX. One was “Atlanta,” a mold-breaking comedy series by actor/rapper/wunderkind Donald Glover (aka Childish Gambino), that became acclaimed by both audiences and critics pretty much right out of the gate. But the other innovative show—one that placed women at the forefront—was Pamela Adlon’s “Better Things.” Now in […]
‘Fortnite: Battle Royale’ raises the bar with scare factor and high intensity
Horror movies rarely scare me. They used to, but it’s been awhile since a scary movie has given me that feeling of creeping terror that made me squirm or jump out of my seat. But a new video game mode, “Battle Royale” in “Fortnite,” had me legitimately screaming. The concept is simple: 100 players are […]
Berklee Beantown Jazz Festival proves that jazz is still thriving
I’d begun to think that jazz was dead. That had seemed to be the cultural opinion, too. One of last year’s Oscar contenders, “La La Land,” had the death of the genre as a major theme. Even the way we talk about jazz is with an eye to the past—about the greats who’ve been dead […]
HBO’s ‘The Deuce’ presents a sex-filled, corrupt NYC in the 1970s
HBO’s new show “The Deuce” depicts a New York City on the verge of collapse. The show is all about exploitation. Systemic, sexual, economic—you name it. From “The Wire” creator David Simon and co-writer George Pelecanos comes a portrait of midtown New York in the seventies, a bygone time when urban and criminal were almost […]
Capitol Steps’ performance falls short of a ‘comedy nerd’s’ expectations
Political comedy group “The Capitol Steps” came to Brandeis to perform on Thursday, Sept. 29. The troupe, consisting of former Senate staffers turned comedians, sang a variety of parody songs aimed at making fun of various politicians and current events. Some of the jokes, however, fell a little flat. We live in an interesting political […]
The National explores relationships in gloomy, but complex “Sleep Well Beast”
One of my main criteria for art is whether or not it produces a reaction. Did it actually make me feel something? Most things don’t. It takes a truly special work of art to pierce my general apathy. Next I ask, if the piece was effective in the moment, did I want to return to […]
