Audiobook Review: “H.G. Wells: The Science Fiction Collection”
A new Audible collection enlists a stable of screen stars to read H.G. Wells’s five best-known science fiction novels. They’re still ripping good stories.
Movie Review: “Tolkien” Quests for the “Lord of the Rings” Backstory
A new biopic unsubtly connects J.R.R. Tolkien’s World War I experiences to the dark visions he’d later evoke in ‘The Lord of the Rings.’
Movie Review: “Wild Nights With Emily” Humanizes Dickinson
What if Emily Dickinson wasn’t a bizarre recluse who had a way with words, but a confident proto-modernist poet who also happened to be a queer woman?
Audiobook Review: “Master & Apprentice” Spotlights Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan Before Jar Jar
Distinguished as the earliest book in the current Star Wars timeline, Claudia Gray’s ‘Master & Apprentice’ is lavish exposition of Qui-Gon Jinn’s backstory.
Hetty McKinnon’s “Family” Vegetarian Cookbook, Reviewed by a Carnivore
I didn’t grow up in a house where roasted cauliflower was “highly sought after,” but now I’m on the same page as McKinnon’s kids: ready to ditch the Spam.
“Spamlot” Explained for (and Recommended to) Monty Python Neophytes
I have never seen any Monty Python work, but knew to expect irreverent humor. Could the search be for a can of Spam? Who was Monty Python anyway?
The Five Millionth Sally Rooney Book Review To Use the Word “Millennial”
Depending on your preferred review source, Sally Rooney is ‘the first great millennial novelist’ or even ‘the first great millennial author,’ full stop.
Movie Review: Tim Burton’s “Dumbo” Is the Best Flying-Elephant Movie of the Year
Tim Burton’s ‘Dumbo’ feels less like a Disney animated classic than one of the studio’s live-action adventures about a pair of spunky kids and a trusty pet.
Movie Review: “Us” Proves Jordan Peele Is the Heir to Horror’s Crown
With his thrilling and wildly entertaining “Us,” Jordan Peele has crafted a worthy successor to “Get Out.” It’s a throwback to the golden era of horror.
Book Review: David Lynch’s Visual Art Gets a Dark Spotlight In “Someone Is In My House”
David Lynch’s genius began with drawings and has constantly returned to the canvas. ‘Somone Is In My House’ offers a generous selection of his visual art.
Audiobook Review: In “Up Against the Wall,” David Hasselhoff Saves the Free World
David Hasselhoff wrote and narrates a new alternate history that inflates his role in the end of the Cold War beyond, even, the strange reality of it.
Book Review: Mark Dery’s “Born to Be Posthumous” Probes Edward Gorey, Gently
It’s well past time for a proper Edward Gorey biography, and gratifyingly, Mark Dery explores the eccentric artist’s world without overexplaining.