Since last May, fans of ABC's serial drama "Lost" have been waiting anxiously for the arrival of its sixth and final season. After Season Five's dramatic "fade to white" ending, viewers were left without any knowledge of what happened to the characters they loved, having to wait out the time between the two seasons in doubt.
Rapper extraordinaire Lil Wayne dropped his newest offering, "Rebirth," on Feb. 2, just one week before beginning his 12−month jail sentence at Rikers Island in New York City for weapons possession. The album, Wayne's foray into the rock genre, takes major risks by moving away from the traditional formulas of rap but lacks the energy, creativity and raw passion that made him a staple of the modern music industry.
"When in Rome" totally fails to captivate audiences, scraping the bottom of the barrel with its predictable plot lines and mundane characters. Kristen Bell, who starred in the show "Veronica Mars" (2004−2007) and plays the infamous voice of Gossip Girl on the eponymous show, attempts to break away from television roles and take on Hollywood in this blundering romantic comedy. Alongside Bell is B−list actor Josh Duhamel, whose only contributions to the film are his charming, pretty− boy good looks.
Advertisements during the Super Bowl are arguably some of the most entertaining of the year; for some they can even be more entertaining than the game itself. But one ad this year — the non-profit organization Focus on the Family's spot featuring Heisman Trophy winner Tim Tebow and his mother, Pam, a former Christian missionary — drew a particularly notable amount of attention. The ad, entitled "Celebrate family, celebrate life," features Pam discussing her "miracle baby" who "almost didn't make it into this world." While the ad itself does not explicitly discuss "their story" — Pam decided not to abort her child despite enduring a life-threatening pregnancy — it directs viewers to the Web site of the blatantly pro-life, evangelical Focus on the Family.
Whistler in the Dark's production of Naomi Wallace's "One Flea Spare" brings to light the human frailties tested during the time of the Black Death. Amid the backdrop of this disease-ridden world, love and loyalty are harder to find and deception is rampant, as one upper-class couple, a sailor and a girl are forced to remain together in a single room for a month under quarantine. Under Meg Taintor's direction, "One Flea Spare" opens and closes doors to the human heart as the characters confront disease, death and — almost as heartbreakingly — survival.
I'm so excited about this week's review. I want to get up and shout my excitement from the mountaintops. I want to dance through the streets proclaiming how incredible this thing is. I want to tell everyone and get riled up!
"Fish Tank" is not a film for the faint of heart. This dark portrait of a teenage girl growing up in working-class England is harrowing in its brutal honesty. Writer-director Andrea Arnold offers a teen drama that Hollywood doesn't usually present. Instead of trendy lingo, a hipster soundtrack and a love interest to bring salvation, Arnold presents a harsh dose of real life.
Considering the Museum of Fine Arts (MFA), Boston's usual collection of African and Oceanic art -- a mere two rooms next to the special exhibition galleries on the first floor -- the appearance of "Object, Image, Collector: African and Oceanic Art in Focus" is a welcome celebration of two sectors not often highlighted at the museum. But, despite the exhibit's inclusion of several exquisite objects and its intriguing central theme, it doesn't pull the pieces together the way it should and, if anything, seems an overly cautious step toward a more thorough exploration of African and Oceanic art.
"End Times," the latest record from the alternative rock band Eels, defies description. Lyrically, the album is a somber study of failed love; however, the band expresses depressing subject matter through a variety of arrangements. From melancholy solo-guitar songs to more upbeat, bluesy tunes with full instrumentation, the album fuses different styles, all held together by frontman Mark Everett's gruff, talky vocals.
The new film "Youth in Revolt," based on the novel by C.D. Payne, tells the story of Nick Twisp, a sex-obsessed adolescent who falls for the beautiful Sheeni Saunders. Wearing Converse, green corduroys and a blue collared shirt (buttoned to the top, of course), Michael Cera introduces himself with the friendly, albeit slightly nervous demeanor that's made him famous. He is essentially the same unassuming, awkwardly boyish character he plays in his other movies.
It's hard to imagine Michael Cera abandoning his classic nice- guy persona to cross-dress and portray a scheming, sleazy-looking, mustachioed Frenchman.
I've never been the kind of person who falls in love with a place. I love the people and the memories from the places that I go, but the soil itself isn't the important thing. Plus, my parents sold my childhood home two weeks before I started college, and I've been something of a nomad ever since. For the past two years, I haven't really lived anywhere for more than four months (dorm rooms excepted, and no one really feels at home there).
SyFy channel's Nick Willing, who remade "The Wizard of Oz" as the 2007 miniseries "Tin Man," writes and directs a trippy new take on Lewis Carroll's classic stories. In his new two−part mini−series "Alice," Willing combines the stories of "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland" and "Through the Looking−Glass." The first half premiered Sunday, Dec. 6, and the second part aired the following night.
Clint Eastwood is hunting for yet another Oscar nomination this year. In these final days of December, Eastwood releases his newest film "Invictus," a story about the beginning of Nelson Mandela's presidency that has the potential to garner numerous awards this season.
What makes a person truly free or truly happy? Do the homes, possessions and relationships in our lives support us or hold us down? This is the question at the center of "Up in the Air," a beautiful, funny and heartfelt story of a man who lives everywhere but has no home.
In "Up in the Air," director Jason Reitman examines the life of a man lost in the clouds. This is his third feature−length film, following 2007's Oscar−nominated "Juno," and it is already receiving tremendous critical and commercial acclaim. Reitman had enough time in his travel schedule to talk about directing, his actors and the economy.
Every week the Daily Arts department gets together to brainstorm the ludicrous content you find each Thursday in the Weekender section. This meeting leading to our Top 10 list usually consists of high fives and laughter and friendship, but sometimes the ideas don't quite work. Think of this week's list like "Behind the Music:" a backstage peek at the inner workings of your second favorite part of The Daily (the first being the Sudoku). These are the best of the worst unused ideas from this past semester. Enjoy! 10. Things to swordfight with: This was probably a moment in which we wanted to have a massive Arts fight, and all of us decided to come up with odd weapons for ourselves. Or we'd been there for two hours and had nothing else ... 9. Google alerts: We just couldn't come up with a full list of 10 -- all we could think of was an adult having an alert for "Disney." 8. Reasons why daily arts editors are better in bed: We've got awesome musical selections on our hook-up playlists, we've got great "rhythm," and you can bet that all of our pillow talk will be grammatically correct. What more could you want? 7. Things my friend said on his acid trip: "THIS ... is the most UNBELIEVABLE moment ... that ANYONE has ever remembered to FORGET about my BROTHER? TULL! Polumphygazeous? Unbelieveable-unbelievable-unbelievable-unbelievable ..." 6. Ways to blow off steam: We realized we needed to let this list die after one of us suggested "clubbing baby seals" as a stress-reliever. Stand by to be fire-bombed by PETA. 5. Places we want to be on Miley's body: There are zero places we'd like to be on Miley's body. Why? She's underage. Statutory! STATUTORY! 4. Reasons our exec is a hipster: This list couldn't be condensed into 10 items. There are just too many. The oversized glasses, the choppy haircut, the love of postmodernism ... the list goes on and on. 3. Things that make us smile: We only had one, but we'll just put it here instead: ridiculous comments on our online content. "Supernatural" fangirls, MTV producers, Disney addicts: We love you we love you we love you! 2. Things that are awesome: Mallomars, Tide-to-go pens, secret shots, Mac widgets, snow days, "Best of the Decade" lists ... wait, just kidding ... sort of. 1. Things: This was the all-time low. But sort of genius at the same time ...
For college students, the problem is universal: It's nearing midnight, and the crucial macroeconomics problem set or philosophy paper remains unfinished. With a long night of studying ahead, an effective student should be focused on numbers and syntax, but often there's only one thing on his or her mind: food.
From the first strains of its overture to its grand finale, Peter Ilich Tchaikovsky's "The Nutcracker" is one of the best−known ballets ever written. Going to see the dance is a beloved holiday tradition, and the Boston Ballet's spectacular production brings this Christmas tale to the people of Boston each year, complete with elaborate sets and beautiful costumed dancers. Magical story becomes majestic spectacle
