Review

Book Review: “Second Star and other reasons for lingering” — Making the Case for Concentration

May 14, 2023
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The point of the revelatory exercises in Second Star is to mentally invigorate, to sharpen how we look at the things in plain sight that we take for granted.

Television Review: “Sanctuary” — A Double Dose of Toxic Masculinity

May 14, 2023
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Netflix’s dumb series Sanctuary serves up a cartoon view of sumo wrestling.

Book Review: “Bottoms Up and the Devil Laughs” — Surveying the Surveillance State

May 12, 2023
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Kerry Howley’s expose is a vibrant report on the chaotic and often disquieting world of surveillance and national security.

Children’s Book Reviews: Spotlight on Animal Friends

May 12, 2023
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Children’s picture books about dogs and cats are plentiful, but a few new entries in the genre stand out.

Film Series Review: “Late Kiarostami” — Spotlighting the Works of a Master Iranian Filmmaker

May 12, 2023
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This not-quite-full retrospective contains three masterpieces of Iranian cinema: Close-Up, Taste of Cherry and The Wind Will Carry Us.

Visual Arts Review: “Chasing Rembrandt” — The Hunt Continues?

May 11, 2023
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Chasing Rembrandt is a small show, probably quickly assembled to complement the TheaterWorks production. For curious viewers, though, it raises a number of provocative questions.

Concert Review: Jazz Saxophonist Kamasi Washington and His Eight-Piece Ensemble — Their Virtuosic Sprawl Intact

May 11, 2023
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The saxman and his usual band (including vocalist Patrice Quinn instead of the billed Ami Taf Ra) easily adapted to the 200-seat venue, barely modulating their visceral delivery while also highlighting their softer dynamics and a personal rapport.

Book Review: “Back to the Dirt” — An American Apocalypse in Progress

May 11, 2023
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All of the characters in Back to the Dirt are, in a sense, survivalists, people clinging onto what’s long gone, stockpiling karma for an apocalypse that is already upon them.

Album Review: Canadian Singer/Songwriter Marc Jordan — An Elegant Discovery

May 11, 2023
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Singer Marc Jordan has earned his voice the hard way, trekking through the music business for 50 years, and there’s a weathered honesty in his music now.

Television Review: “Nam June Paik: Moon Is the Oldest TV” — An Artist Who Humanized Technology

May 10, 2023
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An avant-garde iconoclast, Nam June Paik once said “It’s an artist’s job to think about the future.”

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