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Film + TVFilm Review
The Relative Horrors of “A Real Pain”

Jesse Eisenberg’s second directorial effort is passionate, harsh, and at times even agonizing, all in service to themes of generational suffering—and a little bromance.

November 14, 2024
EssayFilm + TV
Amateur Night: An Unofficial but Still Very Correct “V/H/S” Best-of Compendium

We sift through all seven films in the found-footage horror anthology franchise to highlight the best segments.

October 28, 2024
Reviews
Wild Pink, “Dulling the Horns”

Addressing the tension between complacency and contentment, John Ross’ fifth LP embraces chunky, feedback-laden chords and a more abrasive live-band sound than he’s ever explored.

October 03, 2024
Reviews
Merce Lemon, “Watch Me Drive Them Dogs Wild”

Evolving from slight bedroom-pop to vast gothic country, the Pittsburgh native’s ambitious third LP sees her escape any limiting qualifiers with a withering exit velocity.

September 26, 2024
Reviews
Porches, “Shirt”

Despite the antics that often undercut it, this sixth record is the most expansive, dense project that the ever-unknowable Aaron Maine has ever put together.

September 13, 2024
Film + TVFilm Review
“Red Rooms” Aims to Turn the Camera on Its True-Sicko Audience

Pascal Plante’s psychological thriller is the opposite of the tidy serial killer fare true-crime addicts are used to—and that may be the point.

September 06, 2024
EssayFilm + TV
The Perfect Organism: Stacking Up “Alien: Romulus” Against Its Predecessors

We dissect director Fede Álvarez’s contribution to the long-running sci-fi series and how its goo and gloom compare to that of the six titles that came before it.

September 04, 2024
Reviews
Fontaines D.C., “Romance”

The Dublin rockers’ fourth album fully puts to bed any argument claiming predictability, with producer James Ford helping to lift these 11 tracks far beyond the band’s post-punk usual.

August 29, 2024
EssayFilm + TV
“Coraline” (a.k.a. the Best Animated Film of the 21st Century) at 15

In which we make five wildly reckless and critically irresponsible claims about how well Henry Selick’s 2009 adaptation of Neil Gaiman’s horror fable holds up.

August 21, 2024
Reviews
Sinai Vessel, “I Sing”

Caleb Cordes provides a thoughtfully nuanced thesis statement for his heartland indie-rock project as he paints a portrait of an artist working under the long shadow of late capitalism.

July 26, 2024
Film + TVFilm Review
“Twisters” Is All High Highs and Rough Comedowns

Lee Isaac Chung’s blowsy sequel to the also-pretty-blowsy 1996 action hit has its moments, though those moments are usually the twisters.

July 19, 2024
Film + TVFilm Review
Greasefellas: “The Bikeriders” Aims for Gang Epic but Stalls Out Again and Again

Jeff Nichols’ new film inspired by the rugged late-’60s photography of Danny Lyon is little more than some guys looking really, really cool.

June 21, 2024
Reviews
Bonny Light Horseman, “Keep Me on Your Mind / See You Free”

Recorded in a centuries-old pub in Ireland, the extensive third album from Josh Kaufman, Anaïs Mitchell, and Eric D. Johnson is a firm commitment to the bit as the trio perfects their chemistry.

June 11, 2024
Film + TVFilm Review
“The Watchers” Achieves Genuine Discomfort at the Expense of Engaging Character Development

Ishana Night Shyamalan’s debut feature is at its best when it embraces its own absurdity, yet often crumbles under its own weight.

June 07, 2024
Reviews
Young Jesus, “The Fool”

John Rossiter subdues his experimental instincts for sweeping heartland rock on his boldly reflective seventh LP.

May 30, 2024
Film + TVFilm Review
With “Evil Does Not Exist,” Ryusuke Hamaguchi Masters the Quiet Ecological Parable

On the heels of 2021’s Drive My Car, the Japanese filmmaker takes a passive look at all the shit that inevitably flows downstream when capitalism disrupts community.

May 23, 2024
EssayFilm + TV
The Rare Harmony of “I Saw the TV Glow”

With Jane Schoenbrun’s new film about fandom and nostalgia getting a significant boost from its carefully curated soundtrack, King Woman’s Kris Esfandari and Florist’s Emily Sprague weigh in on the movie’s magic.

May 17, 2024
EssayFilm + TV
Luca Guadagnino’s Double-Edged Sword of Desire

The passion and pain of the Italian filmmaker’s latest feature, Challengers, fits into a career-long obsession with these same themes.

May 13, 2024
Reviews
Babehoven, “Water’s Here in You”

Maya Bon and Ryan Albert’s second LP of lush indie-folk is warm and inviting as ever, though the album’s impressionistic storytelling tends to keep the listener at arm’s length.

April 26, 2024
Film + TVFilm Review
Alex Garland’s “Civil War” Takes an Objective Stance on Pre-Election Anxieties

A film about a violently fractured nation seems like an apt note for the ever-polarizing director to go out on.

April 12, 2024
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